


You Are Worth Everything

by SasuNarufan13



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Blow Job, Deep Throating, Drama, Established slash, Fluff, Homophobic Slurs, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mpreg, No Means No, Pushy people, Sasuke's POV, homophobic parents, mature content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:21:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 29,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28149018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SasuNarufan13/pseuds/SasuNarufan13
Summary: Sometimes a parent's love does come with conditions. That's something Sasuke unfortunately finds out. He's not willing to give up Naruto for it, though.
Relationships: Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 291
Kudos: 406
Collections: Extraordinary SNS Fics💕, Foxy fox 🦊





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Author's note: So this is a story I started around two or three years ago, I think? I figure posting this finally will kick my arse in gear to finish the entire story. *sheepish smile* It's not going to be terribly long (no, it really won't be, stop looking at me like that) but the chapters are going to be longish. Something to tie you over while I work on the various other projects I've got going.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.
> 
> I hope you'll like this first part of the new story!

_Chapter 1_

"Let's break up."

People were mingling around the schoolyard, laughing and cheering loudly as they celebrated the fact that they were officially done with secondary school now. Graduation was today and they were no longer students of this school anymore. In two weeks they would take the next step in the journey of their lives: some would start working immediately, others would continue their studies at the various universities spread out over the country.

Some girls were sniffling, hugging each other tightly as they realised they wouldn't see each other regularly anymore. There were guys loudly proposing to go to bars to celebrate, laughing it off when one of their former teachers told them off. Parents were hugging their children, telling them how proud they were of them.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not in love with you anymore."

Some guys ran past them, jostling his shoulder, calling out a half-hearted, "Sorry!"

"I've wanted to break up for a while now, but I didn't want to mess with your exams."

In the corner of his eye, he could see his parents waiting patiently for him to join them so they could go celebrate his graduation, both impeccably dressed as always.

"It's just … These past four years were great, but it couldn't last forever, you know? It's time we each go our own way. I hope we can be friends again in the future."

A pause. A shuddering exhale and a despondent smile. Blue eyes murky and dim instead of bright.

"Good luck with your studies. Goodbye, Sasuke."

He was left alone, staring numbly at the one who had just turned his whole world upside down, who was now walking away from him for good. His right hand clenched around the small box in the pocket of his jacket and he swallowed; a lump blocking his throat.

Guess he had been the only one to think they had a future together.

* * *

"I'm sorry I couldn't attend your graduation, otouto," Itachi said, his apology sincere; in the background there was the sound of a printer working. "The meeting couldn't be replaced and father was adamant I attended that one."

"It's okay, Itachi," Sasuke sighed, staring up at his ceiling. Outside some birds were chirping and tweeting loudly as if they were having an argument. "I know you're busy. How's the company doing?"

"It's doing well. Well enough that I should be able to visit somewhere in December," his older brother replied and paused. "Mother says you haven't been really yourself since you graduated. Did something happen?"

The younger man snorted and rolled his eyes. "Mother worries too much," he replied sourly, crossing his ankles.

"So you're not nervous because you'll start university in two weeks?"

"Why would I be nervous about that? I'm not a little kid," Sasuke said scathingly.

Itachi hummed, sounding unconvinced. "Did you and Naruto-kun have a fight?"

Sasuke closed his eyes and clenched his jaw; his chest feeling too tight with all sorts of emotions when he thought about the blond man who had broken his heart three days ago. The man he had been in love with for four years and who he had been planning to propose to on their graduation day. The same man who apparently didn't feel the same anymore and had broken up with him out of the blue.

"I thought so," Itachi said softly, pinpointing his brother's problems as perfectly as always as if there wasn't an entire ocean between them. "You're always out of sorts when you have a fight with him. Have you tried talking to him yet?"

Dark eyes flew open and Sasuke answered bitterly, "He made it quite clear that he doesn't want to talk to me anymore."

Screw that bullshit about possibly being friends again in the future. There was no way they could go back to being regular friends, not with how much Sasuke still loved him. The memories of their relationship would hang over them forever, no matter how many years would pass by.

Itachi clucked his tongue, sounding exasperated when he retorted, "Sasuke, we're talking about the guy who nearly broke his neck when he climbed through your window when he was twelve, just because he didn't want you to be alone on your birthday. The same guy who took the blame of the whiskey bottles mother found in your room two years ago. The one who kept coming back again and again when you were children even after you snubbed him and - "

"All right!" Sasuke exclaimed, cutting off his older brother. "That's enough! I get it!"

"I don't think you really do," Itachi riposted amused. "Look, Sasuke, I don't know what the fight was about, but I sincerely doubt that he would never want to talk to you again. After sticking to your side for so many years he's not going to suddenly drop you. Talk to him, otouto."

Sasuke pursed his lips together and scowled at the ceiling. God, his brother could be _so annoying._

* * *

He knocked on the door and waited, looking around idly even though he knew nothing had changed in the small corridor. The wallpaper was still peeling off and the tiles were still dirty and a far cry from the bright white they once must have been. The couple three apartments down was still screaming at each other as they argued for the umpteenth time. The guy on the floor above was still turning up his stereo way too high and would most likely receive yet another complaint from his neighbours.

Naruto had been living here for a couple of years now, using the inheritance of the godfather he had never known to pay for the place after he had left the orphanage. The apartment building wasn't in the safest place of the town, but it was affordable and that had been all that Naruto had cared about.

Thinking about the blond man made him restless and he stared at the closed door with a frown. It had been five days now since Naruto had broken up with him and he had decided that in spite of his brother being annoying as shit, he was still right – that bastard – and he needed to talk to Naruto. If only to find out whether he had done something in particular that had made Naruto decide that breaking up with him had been necessary.

He hadn't alerted the younger man that he was coming over, knowing that the other one would try to hide from him. Hiding from Sasuke had always been the blond's preferred tactic when he had been the one to instigate an argument.

There was no answer coming from inside and Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows, slipping his phone out of his pocket to check the hour. Three fifteen; Naruto's part-time job at the ramen stand didn't start until seven o'clock, so where was he now?

Clucking his tongue, Sasuke put his phone back into his pocket and unearthed his keys from the other one. The keyring held the keys to his house, to the car he had got as a gift for getting his license and to Naruto's apartment. The blond man had given him the key a year ago, telling him half-jokingly, half serious that he could use it whenever he needed some time away from his own home – and by extent his father.

Sasuke had barely used the key; most of the time he was accompanied by Naruto himself when visiting the apartment, so there had been no need to use his own. Now, however, he figured it was as good as a time as any to make use of it. If Naruto caught him waiting here, the younger man might flee; he had less of a chance to escape if Sasuke was already waiting for him in his place.

The door closed behind him with a quiet click and he removed his shoes, exchanging them for the slippers he had left behind the first time he had visited the apartment. This place was as familiar to him as his own house and he first made a beeline to the kitchen, checking the fridge. He tsk'd when he saw how bare it was: only a couple of boxes with take-out, a bottle of milk and a bottle of apple juice. Unfortunately it wasn't such an uncommon sight. The sink held some unwashed glasses and bowls and some crumbs still dusted the small, dingy table.

Exiting the small kitchen, he wandered around the living room for a while, taking note of the old magazines and old schoolbooks Naruto hadn't boxed up yet. The orange quilt Naruto had had for as long as Sasuke could remember was haphazardly thrown over the back of the couch and he absentmindedly straightened it out, feeling the soft wool glide underneath his fingertips.

Still only hearing the noise of Naruto's neighbours, he turned around and went to the only room closed off by a door: the bedroom. Naruto's familiar scent assaulted him the moment he set foot inside and he hovered in the doorway for a bit before making his way further inside.

The unmade bed caused a flood of memories of how they had spent most of their time in it; sweaty, their limbs tangled together, sharing kisses and caresses, satiated and happy, revelling in each other's presence.

Swallowing, Sasuke averted his eyes and looked at the wooden desk right underneath the window, which was still missing one of its legs and therefore stood quite lopsided. Some photographs were clustered at the left upper corner and with a jolt he realised that Naruto hadn't removed any of the pictures with them together. Wondering whether this meant something, he approached the desk; his footsteps silent on the carpet. His eyes were drawn towards the little calendar placed on the windowsill and he frowned when he noticed that today's date had been circled with red and had the small note ' _Doctor's appointment!_ ' scrawled across it.

"Doctor's appointment?" he mouthed, resting his hand on the desk. Why would Naruto need to go to the doctor? The man was one of the healthiest people he knew; he could count the few times he had been seriously ill on one hand throughout all the years he had known him. He had looked fine on graduation day, so why did he need to see a doctor now?

When he took one more step forwards, his foot bumped against the small bin, causing the content of it to rattle rather loudly. A tad annoyed by the noise, he looked down to see what would make such noise.

"What the hell?" he muttered, spotting a couple of weird white sticks laying on the bottom of the bin. They didn't look like pens and he bent down, intent on finding out what the strange objects were.

It was when he was holding them out in front of him, the daylight hitting them, that he realised what exactly he had in his hand.

All air promptly left his lungs and he uttered a choked sound, staring wide eyed at the sticks as his heart skipped a beat and then went in overdrive.

_Shit._

* * *

One in a hundred men were born with an extra gene. It had been named the MPR gene and scientists had come to the conclusion – after many years of research – that this gene was nature's way of preventing extinction. Areas where the population was in danger of dwindling fast reported more men carrying the MPR gene than areas where the population was balanced.

Every boy at the age of seven years had their blood drawn and was consequently subjected to a scan in order to find out whether they were carriers of the gene or not.

Sasuke nor anyone in his family as far as he was aware of carried the gene. Naruto did, though.

It was something his best friend had confessed to him in the dead of the night when they had been fourteen years old. It had been two months after they had started dating.

" _There's something I need to tell you," Naruto said nervously, wringing his hands together._

_They were sitting on Sasuke's bed; they had finished dinner a few hours ago and had been sneaking kisses from the moment they had been safely enclosed in Sasuke's room. His parents didn't know about the change in their relationship and the secrecy of it made their kisses even more thrilling; their fumbled touches even more exciting._

_Sasuke raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the nerves practically pouring off the blond boy. "Okay, what is it?"_

" _I – I figured you had the right to know, considering, you know," Naruto waved between them, laughing jitterily, "what we're doing now. Eh, you know about the MPR gene?"_

" _Of course I know. Who doesn't?" Sasuke snorted, shaking his head at the stupid question. Everyone grew up learning about the MPR gene even if they weren't carriers of it._

" _What, eh, what was your result?" Naruto asked, licking his lips._

_Black eyebrows furrowed. "Don't carry the gene," Sasuke replied, narrowing his eyes slightly. He was starting to have an inkling as to where this conversation was going. "Don't think anyone in my family does. You?"_

_The blond boy nodded jerkily, staring down at the slightly rumpled sheet. "Y-yeah, I, eh, I'm a carrier," he mumbled, voice barely audible, as his cheeks reddened fiercely. "I figured that – well, you should know about it. If you – if that means you don't want to continue this anymore, then … Then I'm fine with it." He shrugged half-heartedly, his eyes still trained downwards._

_His forced nonchalance was almost painful to hear and Sasuke clucked his tongue, slapping Naruto on the back of his head, eliciting a surprised yelp._

" _What the hell was that for?" Naruto snapped, rubbing his head as he scowled at the dark haired boy._

_Dark eyes rolled. "Why would I stop doing this with you just because you're a carrier? All it means is that we'll definitely have to use protection once we go further," Sasuke retorted, smirking._

_Cerulean blue eyes widened in shock. "You – you don't mind?"_

" _No, I don't mind. You're still an usuratonkachi, carrier or not," Sasuke snorted and then his lap was full with an excited, flailing blond and they didn't say anything else for quite a long while._

When they started having sex, they had always made sure to use a condom when Sasuke was topping. There were no other contraceptives available for them to use – no pill or anything else like it that Naruto could ingest to ensure he was protected – so condoms were their only way to protect themselves against a pregnancy.

They had always been very careful that they didn't forget protection – and yet the three pregnancy tests in front of him on the desk all coloured positive, announcing that Naruto was currently expecting a baby. There was of course a chance that the sticks were giving a false positive, but he thought it very unlikely that all three sticks would be faulty. That would be too much of a coincidence. In spite of being careful, their protection had still failed them apparently.

So. Naruto was pregnant. Expecting a baby.

_Sasuke's baby._

Why hadn't he told Sasuke? Was the pregnancy the reason why he had broken up with him? But that didn't make any sense! Sasuke had the right to know he was going to be a father – had Naruto been planning on keeping it a secret from him forever?

Sasuke inhaled sharply as another possibility popped up in his mind. Was Naruto perhaps planning to …

The sound of a key unlocking the door had him turning around quickly. Naruto's footsteps – as familiar to him as his own – made their way through the apartment. They briefly halted somewhere in the kitchen and there was the sound of the fridge being opened and closed.

"What the …" He could hear Naruto mumble in the vicinity of the living room and there was a pause before the younger man walked straight past the bedroom again, retracing his steps to the front door.

For a moment silence reigned and Sasuke leant against the desk, crossing his arms as he waited for Naruto to connect the dots and realise what the extra pair of shoes meant. If the situation wasn't so grave right now, he would be amused at how oblivious the other man could be to walk straight past shoes that shouldn't be there now without realising immediately something was wrong.

"Sasuke? What the fuck, man?" Naruto raised his voice, sounding pissed off.

"In the bedroom," Sasuke drawled and not even ten seconds later, Naruto appeared in the doorway, his chest heaving slightly as his face contorted in anger.

"What the hell are you doing here, you bastard?" Naruto snapped, taking a step forwards.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, remaining unperturbed. "I came here to ask you why you broke up with me," he replied calmly and uncrossed his arms, bringing his right hand behind his back.

"I already told you! I don't love you anymore, so I - "

"Imagine my surprise when I found these in your bin," Sasuke went on flatly, snatching the pregnancy tests off the desk and brandishing them in front of him.

Anger quickly drained out of Naruto's face and he visibly paled; his eyes widening slightly as his hands clenched around the doorjamb. "That's – why were you looking through the trash?" was his weak reprisal.

"I wasn't looking through it; I bumped against it and was curious about the noise it produced," Sasuke retorted, throwing the tests on the bed. Even though they didn't make any sound when they fell, Naruto still flinched as if struck. "How far along are you?" he asked quietly, crossing his arms again. He wanted to close the distance between them, but he needed answers first. This wasn't something that could be just swept underneath the rug and forgotten about.

"Nine weeks," Naruto answered wearily.

Sasuke briefly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "How long have you known about it?"

The younger man shrugged, looking away. "I started throwing up around a month ago and I took the tests three weeks ago."

Three weeks. Naruto had known for three weeks he was pregnant and he had never once mentioned something to Sasuke about it. _That stung._

"Why the hell didn't you tell me about this?" Sasuke demanded, anger flaring up for the first time in their conversation. "How could you just break up with me and not tell me you're pregnant?! Were you even planning on ever telling me that or - "

"Because I'm not going to fuck over your life, okay?!" Naruto suddenly shouted and the unexpected fierce reaction made Sasuke shut up abruptly. Naruto breathed harshly, hugging himself as he bit down on his lower lip. "I didn't – Sasuke, you've got a full scholarship."

"What the hell are you on about? What does my scholarship have to do with this?" Sasuke questioned perplexed, thrown off guard.

"It has everything to do with this! You're so smart you got a full free ride for university and I know that whatever you end up doing afterwards it'll be a success. You have all these amazing opportunities and I'm happy for you because I know you worked hard for it," Naruto started rambling and he had completely lost Sasuke by now. What did his scholarship or even his future career have to do with the fact that Naruto had kept quiet about the baby?

"And because I know how hard you worked for it, I can't fuck it up for you now," Naruto continued; his voice shaky as his form started to shiver slightly. "You don't deserve to be tied down to a baby at this age, Sasuke. Not when you're about to go to university and start studying law. I can't do that to you. It wouldn't be fair and - "

"How about you let me decide about my own life," Sasuke cut him off coolly. "I wasn't aware that a scholarship means I'm not allowed to see my own child."

"That's not what I mean!"

"No? Because you broke up with me without even mentioning you were pregnant – how am I supposed to take that?"

"I already told you – I'm not going to screw over your life with a baby now! You deserve to go to university and - "

"Where the fuck does it state that I can't go to university and raise my own damn child?" Sasuke snapped, taking a step closer to the blond man.

"You'll be busy with studying and you never mentioned wanting to have children," Naruto said; his voice wavering more and more with each word that left his mouth.

Sasuke rubbed his hands over his face in frustration. "I've been busy nearly my entire life with studying so far and yet I still managed to make time free for you, didn't I?" he pointed out with a growl. "Figuring out a schedule to accommodate a baby isn't exactly rocket science, Naruto. I knew from the start that there was a possibility of you becoming pregnant earlier than expected – condoms aren't exactly a hundred percent safe and clearly we messed up a few months ago. That doesn't mean I'm not going to take my responsibility!"

Something stirred in blue eyes before they shuttered close and Naruto's face turned disturbingly blank. "That's just it, Sasuke," he murmured, sounding distant. "I'm not going to force you to take care of the baby just because it's yours. Not with - "

"I wouldn't be forced," Sasuke retorted sharply, balling his hands into fists. "You're the one who broke up with me, Naruto, not the other way around! I wasn't even thinking of breaking up with you, so - "

"But a baby is different!" Naruto insisted heatedly; his eyes flashing up. "A baby is going to change your life and you won't be able to - "

"Who said I would mind changing my life for our baby?" Sasuke bit out and Naruto's teeth clacked audibly shut as he stared stumped at the dark haired man. "If you had just talked to me from the start, you'd have known I don't mind having a child now. Sure, we'll have to change some things; I'll take up less classes this year and we'll have to figure out where to live because both our places are too far from the university, but it's not impossible. God damn it, Naruto, why couldn't you just have talked to me?"

To his horror his voice caught and he looked away, feeling so overwhelmed, so angry, so frustrated, so fucking in love with the man in front of him, that he didn't know for a moment what to do.

"We're just eighteen," Naruto said softly, cutting through the silence.

"Not like we would be the first to become parents this young," Sasuke quipped tiredly.

"A baby is going to change a lot of things in our lives."

"If you're ready, I am." As soon as the words left his mouth, Sasuke suddenly realised that he didn't know whether Naruto was actually planning on keeping the baby and his heart clenched painfully. Was Naruto planning to get rid of their child?

"Your parents – we haven't even told them we're together," Naruto pointed out quietly; his eyes too wide in his face.

The use of the present tense concerning them had hope flickering up in him, even if dread settled in his stomach at the thought of his parents. "The thought of a grandchild might soften the blow," he joked, but it fell flat and his smirk felt frozen.

Naruto bit down on his lower lip. "What if – what if they'll kick you out?" he asked worriedly. "I don't want to be the reason your parents kick you out of the house."

Sasuke's first reaction was to deny that his parents would go that far, but then an image of his father resurfaced, scoffing at images of a gay pride on the news and he swallowed. Getting kicked out of the house was actually a fairly realistic possibility, one that had been in the back of his mind ever since he had kissed Naruto for the first time.

As he looked at his lover, the man who was now carrying his baby, his best friend and the only person in the world – except for his brother – who knew him completely and still loved him …

He decided that getting kicked out of the house was a risk he was willing to take. If the alternative was losing Naruto and their child, then he would choose being disowned before even considering never seeing Naruto or their baby anymore.

"And I don't want to lose you," Sasuke stated honestly, smiling faintly when Naruto promptly reddened. "You've always been more important to me than father, Naruto."

The blond man fidgeted slightly, tugging at his shirt. "Where are you going to live then?" he asked rather subdued.

Sasuke pursed his lips, rubbing his right cheek briskly with the back of his hand. "I was planning on living in a dorm, but …" A thought shot through his head and he furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you planning to do now? Will you be able to handle classes once you're further along?"

Naruto grimaced, looking uncomfortable as he swept a hand through his hair, causing it to stick up in every direction. "I, eh, I already contacted the college," he admitted. "I told them about my situation and they're fine with me reducing my classes to only online ones for the first year."

"Good. You're still going to share a dorm with someone?" Sasuke questioned apprehensively and he tried to hide how much that idea got on his nerves. He hadn't liked it from the start; if anyone should be sharing a dorm with the younger man, it should be him. They wouldn't attend the same school, however, so sharing a dorm was definitely out of the question.

Sasuke's scholarship covered the costs of a dorm; he would get a single one at that, not forced to share the space with anyone else. Naruto on the other hand needed the money from his part-time jobs to cover both his tuition costs and living expenses; finding someone to share a room with had been the most logical solution when they had been trying to figure out where to live during the academic year.

Sasuke had offered to help him out financially, but his boyfriend had always been a stubborn idiot and he had utterly refused to let Sasuke help him. That particular refusal had led more than once to a big fight between them in the past year.

Naruto stopped lingering in the doorway and made his way to the bed, plopping down on it. He gathered the pregnancy tests and placed them on the rickety nightstand. "I'm not sure," he professed begrudgingly. "I'm not … really comfortable sharing a dorm with someone I don't know now that I'm pregnant."

The solution which came to him all of a sudden was so easy, he could hit himself for not having come up with it sooner. "What if we look for an apartment together?" the dark haired man suggested, tapping his fingers against the edge of the desk.

Naruto whipped his head around to stare at him wide-eyed. "You mean, living together?" he asked, his voice an octave higher than usual.

Sasuke allowed himself a small smile. "Yeah, why not? It'll be easier with the baby. And," his smile grew, "it's not like I haven't spent several days and nights here before."

"Yeah, but this would be living together permanently," Naruto pointed out patiently. "You're sure you're not going to grow sick of me after a while?"

His tone was joking, but his eyes shone with apprehension, a flash of fear brought about through years of being rejected and made fun of by their peers. No matter how much or for how long he could try, Sasuke doubted he would ever be able to completely chase away Naruto's demons. He might diminish them, supress them for a while, but they would continue to linger, ready to start wreaking havoc the second they had the chance, the moment Naruto let his guard down. All Sasuke could do was remain at his side and show him that he was worth it, no matter what other people might say or think.

"If you start spreading mess around, I'll just lob that right at your face," he smirked; his voice kept purposefully light. "You know I don't have any trouble doing that."

"Always so violent," Naruto whined, but his eyes were shining brightly; any trace of self-doubt cleared up like the sky after a nice bout of rain.

"Like you're a pacifist," Sasuke snorted and sauntered over to the bed, sinking down next to the younger man. Naruto's hand was resting on the bed and Sasuke hooked their pinkies together, studying the other man carefully. "So … We're good? You're going to retract your whole stupid 'Let's break up' speech?"

A trace of bitterness laced his voice and Naruto winced, looking guilty. "I'm sorry," he murmured, hesitating for a moment before he leant his shoulder against Sasuke's. "I just … I panicked and I didn't want to - "

"Burden me, yeah, so you said," Sasuke sighed and shifted further down the bed, tugging at Naruto's shoulder to coax him along. "And this is exactly why you're an idiot: you could never be a burden to me, usuratonkachi."

Naruto's red face resembled a tomato now and he averted his gaze from the dark haired man, even if he settled next to him against the headboard. "Wait until my cravings start and I'm sending you out in the middle of the night to get that stuff. Let's see if you still think that then," he threatened and huffed when Sasuke laughed, poking the older man petulantly in his stomach.

Considering how much Naruto _didn't_ want to be considered a burden to anyone, Sasuke very much doubted he would follow up on his threat. If he did end up sending Sasuke to the store to get something, well, that wouldn't be such a hardship.

He could think of worse things than attending to his boyfriend's cravings.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Well, you were all very clear about the fact that you wanted this story to be continued, so instead of going into the trash, I'll be continuing this story :)
> 
> Thank you so much for all the comments and kudos so far! I'm blown away by the fact that the first chapter alone already has more than a 100 kudos! :O
> 
> Warnings: MPreg; homophobic parents; homophobic slurs; angst; hurt/comfort
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.
> 
> I hope you'll like this part and I wish you all a Happy New Year!

_Chapter 2_

**07.54 p.m. Me**

**I'm staying the night at Naruto's place.**

**07.56 p.m. Mother**

**All right, sweetheart. Text me when you're on your way back.**

Finished with alerting his parents to his whereabouts, Sasuke returned his attention back to the laptop where the screen was displaying a page with housing options.

"You let them know where you are?" Naruto inquired absentmindedly, scrolling down the page slowly. He was sitting cross legged on the bed, the laptop balanced on his legs.

Some empty pizza boxes and drained soda cups laid discarded on the floor, waiting to be dumped into the trash. Above them the lightbulb flickered sometimes whenever the upstairs neighbour decided to stomp around his apartment. Evening had settled in, but the neighbourhood was still bustling with activity; some children were still playing outside, their yelling and screaming drifting up.

"Yeah, before she'd get worried," Sasuke sighed, sliding one arm around Naruto's waist and hooking his chin over his left shoulder. "You found anything interesting?"

Naruto snorted. "Depends on what you call interesting, I suppose," he sighed, scrolling up and down. "Are we going to choose a permanent place to live? So not just until our studies are finished?"

Sasuke breathed out slowly, contemplating the question. "I guess that would be better in the long run?" he said thoughtfully. "We'll probably need to find something further removed from university then, not something aimed at students."

Humming, Naruto went back to the search options on top of the website. "Two bedrooms then? One for the nursery?"

"Sounds good," Sasuke agreed, watching how the options got narrowed down; the list of available places becoming abruptly shorter.

They studied the listings in silence for a while, reading the descriptions and looking through the photos. Some they instantly passed over once they noticed the outrageous high rent. Sasuke knew it wouldn't be cheap renting an apartment in that city with a baby on the way and the both of them studying, but some prices just went out of the roof.

"This one looks good," Naruto spoke, tapping on the picture of a living room with a view over the city. "Says it comes furnished for the most part and the price seems … doable." He sounded dubious about the last part, cocking his head to the right.

"Looks better than the previous one," Sasuke muttered, clicking on the listing.

The rooms appeared spacious enough, for an apartment in Tokyo, and as the listing described, most furniture was already present and included in the rent. The apartment was on the third floor with a lift and was located in a relatively quiet neighbourhood – as quiet as it could get in a busy, bustling city like Tokyo.

He pulled up a map of the region, getting a route description between the apartment and his university. With public transport it would take him around fifteen minutes to get to the university, which was not bad. He had a car, yes, and the listing stated there was underground parking available for the occupants, but he doubted he would be able to use his car much in the city. He'd have to rely mostly on public transport if he wanted to get to his classes on time and not be stuck in traffic for ages.

"Add that one to our list," Sasuke instructed, going back to the real estate page. This particular apartment was the closest one to the university that they had found so far – the closest one and the most affordable one to be precise.

Naruto nodded, copying the street and the link into the document he had created for their apartment quest.

"Something wrong?" Sasuke asked sharply when the blond continued to be quiet. It wasn't like him to be this silent and it unnerved the dark haired man.

Worrying his lower lip between his teeth, Naruto looked to be mulling something over before he sighed and twisted around to put the laptop on his nightstand. When he turned back to look at Sasuke, he carried an uncharacteristically solemn look on his face.

"It's just … How are we going to afford everything?" he asked; the corners of his eyes tight with worry. "Sure, you have your scholarship, but it won't cover the apartment. We'll have to pay rent every month; I'll need to visit a doctor for check-ups; we'll need baby supplies, which also don't come cheap. Not to mention my own classes and food and public transport!" His voice had gone slightly shrill at the end and he was clearly trying to keep a lid on his panic.

"I have money saved up," Sasuke said, grabbing Naruto's hands and holding them tightly to stop him from fidgeting. "I'll be taking up less classes this year anyway, so I'm going to find a part time job. Two if I have to."

"I've got some money saved up too, but …" Naruto shook his head. "Do you think anyone will hire me in this state?"

Almost reflexively Sasuke squeezed Naruto's hands tightly as he frowned. "You're not going to get a job, Naruto," he retorted irritated. "You're pregnant!"

"Bastard, just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I can't still work," Naruto bit out, snatching his hands back. "I'm going to need a part-time job as well if we want to afford everything!"

"I just told you, I can take up two - "

"And when would you study then? I know you're smart, but even you need time to study everything," Naruto snapped and slipped off the bed, standing rigidly next to the nightstand as he crossed his arms. "You're not going to take up two jobs, Sasuke!"

Dark eyes glared at him heatedly. "I know you, okay? For now it's one part-time job, but then you think you can handle two and then three, like you're doing now and I'm not going to let that happen, you idiot! I don't want you to overwork yourself!"

Naruto growled loudly, rubbing his hands briskly over his face as he paced back and forth. For a while nothing but their harsh breathing could be heard; the tension so thick it could be cut with a knife.

Then Naruto dropped back down on the bed, all the fighting in him drained out swiftly. "What are we going to do? We're idiots to think we can handle all this," he muttered bitterly, wrapping his arms around himself.

The dark haired man hesitated, wanting to reach out, but not knowing whether his touch would be welcomed now. Then he decided, fuck it, and swung his legs around until he could sit next to his boyfriend, pressing their legs together. Keeping his eyes averted to the floor, he said softly, "Naruto, if you don't feel ready to do this, …"

Naruto heaved a huge sigh, leaning forwards as he burrowed his head in his hands. "I thought about it," he admitted, voice muffled somewhat. "When I – when I took the tests. I … I panicked and the first thought I had was that I had to get rid of it immediately. That I couldn't fuck up both our lives." His voice was choked, wetly as if he was on the verge of tears.

Sasuke stayed quiet, knowing that he needed to give the blond the time to let it all out. Saying something now would only lead to Naruto bottling it up until he exploded at a later date.

"I, I actually visited a doctor the first week I knew," Naruto continued thickly. His eyes were trained on his hands, which were twisting around each other; his foot tapping nervously against the floor. The wooden plank groaned underneath the persistent assault. "Someone specialised in pregnant men, you know?"

Sasuke nodded slowly, still keeping silent.

"He explained me my options, told me what would happen – said I had to wait a week at least to make my final decision." Naruto sniffled loudly, rubbing his forehead roughly. "I thought – I thought I could deal with aborting it. I mean, it would be for the best, right?" He laughed sharply, bitterly.

Downstairs a couple started arguing loudly; the woman screaming unintelligibly at her partner.

"I just … started listing all the reasons why it would be better if I got rid of it and then …" He sighed gustily, like all the air in his body needed a way out. "I went back a week later, but … I couldn't do it." He shook his head, biting down on his lower lip. "Everything was set up, I laid there on the table and … I just couldn't do it suddenly. I looked at those posters and I … I couldn't go through with it." He shuddered as if he was cold.

"I should have been there from the start," Sasuke murmured; his heart constricting with pain at the thought of how terrified Naruto must have been, how worried and nervous.

Naruto smiled weakly, tugging at some strands of hair covering his forehead. "It was my decision not to tell you," he mumbled. "I – it didn't feel right to bother you with it."

"You didn't become pregnant on your own, Naruto," Sasuke remarked sharply and turned his head to glare at him. "This baby is my responsibility too."

"I know, but - "

"I knew from the start that there was a possibility we could have an accident," Sasuke cut him off, harsher than he intended, but it fucking _hurt._ It fucking hurt him to hear that he might never have heard about his baby if he hadn't cornered Naruto.

It hurt that Naruto hadn't trusted him enough to tell him he had been considering an abortion.

"Knowing it and actually wanting it are two different things, Sasuke," Naruto bit out, tensing up. "You have your whole life ahead of you and you shouldn't have to - "

" _We_ have _our_ whole lives ahead of _us_ ," Sasuke emphasised and grabbed Naruto's hand before the man could get up and walk away. "Ultimately you're still the one who has to decide whether you want to keep the baby or not, but I don't want you to make any decision because you have the stupid thought that it would fuck up my life."

Cerulean blue eyes glowered at him heatedly. "It's not stupid, you bastard!"

"But whatever you decide, I'm on your side," Sasuke went on, ignoring the younger man's outburst.

Naruto stilled and stared at him speechlessly.

Sasuke swallowed, not comfortable with baring himself like that, but knowing it was needed, and said, "All I care about is you. You being happy. If you want to keep the baby, we're keeping it. If not, that's – that's okay too. I'm going to support you either way."

Naruto swallowed audibly and glanced away, staring at the wall like he was thinking about something.

"So what do you want to do, Naruto?"

This would be the turning point in their lives. Perhaps one of the most, if not _the_ most, important ones they would ever face. Whatever they would decide to do next would shape them for the rest of their lives. Keeping the child, giving it away, aborting it … Whichever decision was taken, it would leave a mark behind, Sasuke realised that.

He was okay with that. With whatever would happen next. As long as Naruto was happy, then it didn't matter. He'd try to move the fucking moon if Naruto asked that of him.

A baby wasn't something to be taken lightly, of course. They were both just eighteen, on the cusp of adulthood. Three months ago they had been bickering about their courses, about the places they would visit together. Stuff that other students their age were occupied with as well.

In around seven months, they might be taking care of a baby, their child. A bigger contrast with how their lives had been up until recently couldn't possibly exist. Their studies might take longer; money would perhaps turn out to be an issue at times; his parents might, would perhaps, kick him out as soon as they heard he was gay …

No, it wouldn't be rosy at all; they would come across some difficult challenges, no doubt about that.

Sasuke didn't care. Not as long as he had Naruto with him. He thought he could handle everything, weather any storm coming his way, as long as the blond was at his side.

Once Naruto had confessed being in possession of the gene, a part of Sasuke had already prepared himself for a possible pregnancy. Condoms weren't completely fail proof after all, no matter how careful one was with them. He had known that from the start and had accepted the fact that there was a chance he might become a father sooner than expected.

That didn't matter. It would be his child, a little being who was created out of their love, and Sasuke – Sasuke found he didn't mind that idea.

However, in the end it was still up to Naruto to decide what would happen next. It was his body, so only he had the right to say what he wanted to do.

A hand landed on top of his own, trapping his between two warm ones and he looked up, straight into shimmery blue eyes and a wobbly smile.

"I – I want to keep the baby." His tone wavered, but was resolute. Naruto had taken his final decision.

Sasuke smiled and kissed him gently. "Then we'll keep the baby."

Now they just had to start preparing themselves. A lot was going to change in the upcoming months after all.

* * *

He didn't inform his parents that weekend yet. He wasn't about to delude himself; there was a high probability that father would kick him out as soon as the words "I'm gay" left his mouth. Father probably wouldn't give him much time to pack either, so everything had to be ready by the time he made his confession.

Which meant apartment hunting first.

With each day that passed, they were getting closer to the new start of the academic year. Neither one of them would be living in a dorm now, but regular apartments didn't stay empty for long, not if they were anywhere near half decent. If they wanted to have their first choice, they would have to be quick about it.

On Monday they took Sasuke's car to get to Tokyo, to check out the apartments they had added to their list. They would have taken public transport, but Naruto was feeling queasy, having been forced to get up early because of morning sickness, and a car could be stopped at the side of a road, but a train couldn't.

"You feeling okay?" Sasuke threw his companion a quick, worried glance as they entered the city. Instantly traffic became slower, almost jammed up and there was already somebody honking impatiently behind them.

They had lowered the passenger's seat somewhat, so that Naruto could recline a bit. His face was turned towards the window and while he definitely had more colour in his cheeks than when they left two hours ago, he was still looking quite pale.

"Not yet feeling like I'll throw up all my intestines, so I guess I'm okay," he muttered tiredly.

Dark eyebrows furrowed in consternation. "We can come back later this week when you're feeling better," Sasuke offered, inching the car slowly forwards. Despite the light being green, the cars in front of him didn't seem to move at all.

"Nah." Naruto shook his head, crossing his arms. "I might feel worse then. We're already here anyway; we might as well do the whole tour."

Sasuke nodded and they continued driving slowly in silence; the music on the radio barely audible above the traffic noises.

Half an hour later, he parked the car behind a dark blue Honda and silenced the motor. Naruto had already removed his seatbelt and was out of the car before Sasuke pocketed the keys and stepped out as well.

Naruto lingered on the footway, inhaling deeply and grimacing in disgust. "Ah, the fresh cent of the city," he muttered sarcastically, swinging his arms around a bit and stretching them.

Smirking, Sasuke took him by the arm and they started making their way to the real estate agent's office. "You won't find fresher anywhere else."

The blond man wrinkled his nose and huffed, looking slightly put out.

Well, the big city came with its up and downsides; not much they could do about it bar getting used to it.

* * *

"What do you think?" Sasuke murmured, slipping his arms around Naruto's waist.

Miss Okawa, the real estate agent appointed to them, had slipped outside for a bit, giving them privacy to discuss the apartment.

It was already inching into late afternoon and this was the last apartment on their list. It was also the apartment they had preferred the most when looking at the listing and the reality wasn't that bad at all. There was no couch or any seating furniture available in the small room doubling as the living room. In fact save for a small, wooden table and a dark red carpet, it was completely empty. The kitchen came with the basic essentials, though they would have to acquire a kettle amongst other things like plates and cooking pots. It did come with a table and two chairs already provided, though, so at least they wouldn't have to bother with that.

The bedroom was stripped off any furniture bar a large wardrobe which took up the entire right wall. There was another door in the kitchen leading to a very small patio, so if Naruto wanted to, he could create his own mini garden there. It did look out on the street, but the neighbourhood was relatively peaceful, Okawa had assured them enthusiastically, and they wouldn't be bothered too much by traffic.

Naruto stood in front of the window in the living room, looking outside with a pensive look on his face. At hearing Sasuke's question, he twisted his head around slightly and smiled faintly. "Don't have any complaints about it. You?"

Sasuke shook his head, hooking his chin over Naruto's shoulder, brushing their cheeks together. "No, I think we won't find anything better." He paused, hesitated, but continued begrudgingly, "Or anything cheaper for that matter."

The blond man winced, pursing his lips. "It's going to be hell figuring out the expenses," he muttered, turning back to look out of the window.

"Perhaps, but it's doable," Sasuke murmured, rubbing soothing circles over Naruto's hips through his jeans.

It _had_ to be doable. This was the cheapest apartment they had been able to find, which was still at least half way decent and not located in a bad neighbourhood. Their choices were quite limited unfortunately.

"What do you think? We're signing the contract?" Sasuke inquired after a moment of silence had passed between them.

Naruto twisted around in his arms with a smile, pecking his lips. "Yeah, let's do this." His stomach chose that moment to grumble its protest and he flushed, clearing his throat. "And then find something to eat, because I'm starving."

An amused chuckle left the older man and together they walked outside, where Okawa was waiting for them expectantly. Her answering grin told them she knew what kind of decision they had made.

The contract was signed and the deposit fee handed over before the clock rang four o'clock.

* * *

Over the course of the week Sasuke set about packing everything he owned in boxes. If he had still been planning on living in a dorm, he would only have packed up enough clothes to get through the semester. However he and Naruto had their own apartment now, so there was no reason to leave behind any stuff – especially not when he considered the possibility that he might not be _allowed_ to come back.

It was a thought that lingered in the back of his mind every day: the fact that as soon as he came out to his parents, they would kick him out. He dearly hoped not, but … Father's reaction to anything even hinting at not straight was not very encouraging. If the worst case scenario happened, he at least would be out of the house quickly.

Father spent most of his hours at work and mother had meetings with several people, so neither one of them noticed that Sasuke was packing significantly more stuff than planned. He brought the boxes over to Naruto's, who knew someone with a van who could transport their belongings to the apartment.

On Thursday afternoon he dropped the last box in Naruto's kitchen with a sigh; the soft _'thump'_ echoing through the emptied out room.

"That everything?" the brown haired man leaning against the counter asked gruffly.

Sasuke eyed him warily; his upper lip curling up at the smell wafting off the man. "Yeah, that's everything," he replied.

Kankuro nodded, heaving the box in his arms before ambling out of the apartment. Downstairs his van was waiting, already filled to the brim with both Naruto's and Sasuke's belongings.

Sasuke frowned, listening to the footsteps dying out. "Please tell me he isn't under the influence of anything now," he demanded.

"He isn't stoned now," Gaara piped up bored from his spot next to the window. "He'll get your stuff at your apartment."

Gaara was Naruto's other best friend; someone he had met when he was still living at the orphanage. For some reason, despite having completely opposite personalities, they had latched on to each other and had become best friends.

There was just something about Gaara that rubbed Sasuke the wrong way, however, and despite multiple attempts made by Naruto, the two of them were civil towards each other at best. Naruto liked Gaara, though, so Sasuke was willing to put in the effort to be polite towards the other man.

Although did he really have to let his older brother, a stoner with purple face tattoos and a weird obsession for puppetry, drive their belongings to the apartment?

"Couldn't your sister drive our stuff?" Sasuke asked irritated.

The blonde woman, Temari, was a certifiable bitch, but at least he could trust her not to smoke weed while driving.

"Temari-neechan is away for a business trip," Naruto piped up, wandering into the kitchen after a brief bathroom break. "She won't be back until next week."

"Either Kankuro drives or you're stuck here for another week, Uchiha," Gaara stated blankly, crossing his arms. "Your call."

Sasuke clenched his teeth together and looked away, knowing he couldn't argue.

"It'll be okay," Naruto reassured him, looping his arms around Sasuke's waist. "I told Kankuro that if anything happened to our apartment or our stuff I would tattle on him to Temari-neechan." The scars on his cheeks crinkled together as he grinned; the smile positively evil.

Gaara snorted; a glint of amusement flashing in his green eyes. "He nearly pissed himself. Relax, Uchiha, Naruto's threat was clear enough."

"That remains to be seen," Sasuke muttered darkly underneath his breath. He would only be at ease once they were at the apartment and he could witness with his own eyes that Kankuro hadn't fucked up anything.

"Well, I'm out," Gaara announced, straightening up from his slouched pose against the wall. "Ibiki's going to throw a fit if I'm late for work."

Naruto nodded, loosening his hold around Sasuke to give the red haired man a one armed hug. "I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

Gaara nodded; his eyebrow piercing flashing gold in the low setting sun. He left, closing the door behind him.

"You're going to tell them tonight?" Naruto asked; his voice hushed despite the two of them being the only ones present in the empty apartment.

"Yeah, no point in procrastinating any longer," Sasuke murmured. In spite of being prepared for all possible outcomes, his stomach clenched together at the thought of finally informing his parents that he was in love with Naruto – and that the man was carrying his baby.

Arms slipped back around his waist and Naruto laid his head against his shoulder; blond strands tickling Sasuke's cheek. He didn't say "It will be all right," or "It'll be fine, you'll see,", knowing better than to offer those empty reassurances. Instead lips pressed a soft kiss in Sasuke's neck and hands rubbed soothingly up and down over his back.

"I put together a list of hospitals and private practices near our apartment," Naruto mumbled. His voice low, his lips vibrating against a tendon in Sasuke's neck. "You want to look at them with me and decide which one we're going to pick? I need a new check-up in the third month, so."

His breath left him in a slow exhale and for a moment he closed his eyes, bringing his own arms around Naruto. He listened to the children screaming and laughing outside; mothers yelling at them; people in the apartments above and under and next to them going about their day. This place had become as familiar to him as his own house. This day could be like any others that he had spent here in the past couple of years. It wasn't, though. Everything would change after tonight. Whether that would be in a good way or a bad one remained to be seen.

He nodded, slipping his hand underneath Naruto's sweater, feeling warm, smooth skin underneath his palm.

"Yeah, let's."

* * *

A couple of hours later he drove back home, his stomach cramping with nerves the whole way. Naruto had reassured him he would remain awake until he heard something from him – whether good or bad news. Either way tonight everything would change and that thought made him sick.

His fingers were completely cramped up by the time he parked the car on the driveway and he slowly released the death grip he had on the steering wheel, wincing when the bones in his fingers cracked. He cut off the motor and silence abruptly surrounded him, pressing against his ears.

Staring up at the house in front of him, he wondered despondently whether he would still see it again after tonight. Well, he would find out soon, he supposed. No reason to keep putting it off.

He stepped out, the fine grind crunching underneath his shoes. The car was locked with a soft ' _beep_ ' and he stood there for a moment, taking deep breaths to calm down. Naruto had offered to come with him, but Sasuke had refused. If the conversation went south, at least Naruto wouldn't have to suffer the brunt of it – something which would have been likely to happen, considering father had never really liked Naruto to start with.

Still feeling like he could throw up any moment now, he made his way to the front door, casting a glance at the window next to it. A gap between the curtains allowed him a glimpse of the television; its screen flickering brightly with some kind of nature documentary. It was already past dinner time and his parents usually spent a couple of hours watching television before going to bed.

Mother appeared in the door opening of the living room as soon as he shut the front door behind him. She smiled at him; her dark hair still done up in an intricate bun, but her face was clear from any make-up. "Did you have a fun time with Naruto-kun, honey?" she asked.

"Yeah," he muttered, bending down to remove his shoes and put on his house slippers. He wasn't so certain whether it was a smart idea to remove his shoes, but habit had taken over. His jacket was hung on the peg and now there was really no excuse for him anymore to put it off.

His heartbeat quickening, he turned around to face mother and said, "I have to tell you and father something."

She blinked surprised, her smile turning bemused. "All right. In the living room?"

He nodded and followed her inside where father was still watching the documentary. He turned his head when he became aware of their presence. "Sasuke, how's the packing going?"

"Good," was all Sasuke could reply to that as he halted next to the armchair.

Mother sank down next to father, regarding him curiously. "You said you needed to tell us something?" she prodded him gently. There was still a faint smile lingering around her mouth, but concern lurked in the depths of her eyes.

"I do." He took a deep breath, but that did nothing to stop the jittery nerves racing through his body. Even so, he raised his head and looked at them directly, not allowing himself to come across as cowering or insecure. He knew what he was, who he loved and he wasn't ashamed of himself. There was nothing to be ashamed of. "I haven't been entirely truthful about my relationship with Naruto."

"Not entirely truthful?" Father echoed, narrowing his eyes slightly. He paused the documentary, offering his youngest son his undivided attention.

"What do you mean, Sasuke?" Mother inquired confused.

"We're more than best friends. Have been more than that for four years now." His heartbeat was obnoxiously loud in his ears and he felt uncomfortably hot all of a sudden as if he was standing too close to the fire.

"I'm – not sure whether I understand," Mother smiled weakly, entwining her hands on her lap.

No going back now. "I mean that I'm in love with him, have been for the past four years. I'm gay, mother."

His words echoed through the room, rolling over them as loud as thunder and for one long moment nothing was said. Sasuke stared at his parents, his gaze flitting back and forth, cataloguing the miniscule changes their faces were going through as realisation slowly sank in.

"No, you can't be," Father practically snapped, shaking his head roughly. His fingers dug into the arm of the couch; the leather material protesting quietly. "No son of mine can be like _that_!" He spat out the last word as if it was something disgusting; his face contorted in fury and revulsion.

And though Sasuke had prepared himself for this outcome, had acknowledged it was a real possibility, hearing his father react like that, being subjected to the pure loathing shining through those dark eyes … _It hurt_. It hurt far more than he had thought it would.

Because a part of him had still hoped against reason that father would accept him.

He swallowed; the motion harder with the sudden lump stuck in his throat and brought out, "Nothing changed. I'm still me. I'm still your son, father! It's just that I lo-…"

Father rose up abruptly; the move so quick and aggressive that Sasuke stumbled back reflexively. "Do not call me that ever again," he said lowly; his voice colder than Sasuke had ever heard it be before. "I did not raise you to be a faggot! I should have realised that boy was nothing but trouble! He got you all confused, messing up your - "

"I'm not confused!" Sasuke snapped, balling his hands into fists. "He didn't mess up my head; this is how I was born! It's not like I turned gay on a whim!"

Father's face was slowly becoming redder, his eyes sparking with rage; he had never looked so out of control before. "You are not gay!" he practically bellowed, slashing his hand through the air. "That disgusting boy got you all confused and once he's had his fun with you, he'll - "

"Don't talk about him like that! You don't have any right! He's always been there for me, which is more than I can say about you!" Sasuke snarled, taking a step forwards despite the way father loomed over him.

Abruptly the older man shut down; his face slipping into the blank mask Sasuke had always hated. "Fine. You want him? Go to him then – but don't ever come back here," Father said icily. "It's either him or us. If you choose him, you're no longer my son. As far as I'm concerned, you'll be dead to me."

"Fugaku!" Mother shot up, shaking her head at her husband – but she didn't try to argue with him.

All sound abruptly died down, becoming so muted it was as if he was swimming underwater. Sasuke could only stand there in shock, staring at the man he had called his father for eighteen years – the man he had foolishly thought would have accepted him after all. Sure, he had expected a row, had expected the older man to be nasty about Naruto, but …

A part of him had still believed his father would change his mind in the end. That his son was more important to him than old traditions and his belief that gay people were nothing but unnatural freaks.

The man whose approval he had sought for years, who he had looked up to when he was younger, who mother had assured him would love him no matter what when a younger him had tearfully confided in her that he feared he would never be good enough …

It seemed like his love came with certain conditions after all. If meeting those conditions meant leaving behind Naruto and their unborn child …

So be it then. He'd rather be dead to his father than be without Naruto.

"Fine," Sasuke said tersely, glaring at fa – Fugaku. "I'm leaving then."

He left the living room without looking back, not wanting to see what kind of expression was on Fugaku's face. All he wanted now, was to be gone from here, away from them and go to the one person he could trust to be there for him always.

He had just stuffed his feet into his shoes and was hastily pulling on his jacket when mother entered the hallway, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Sasuke, dear, he doesn't mean it," she said, wringing her hands together. "He's just – you know how he is."

"Yes and I can't change what I am," Sasuke retorted heatedly. "Are you going to try to change his mind?"

She bit down on her lower lip, casting her eyes to the ground. "You know I can't - "

He snorted harshly, the derisive sound causing her to flinch and stare at him with open mouth. "That's what I thought," he said bitterly, opening the front door. He paused with his hand on the doorknob, looking at her for what would most likely be the last time. "I don't know why I'm telling you this when it doesn't matter anymore, but … Naruto's pregnant. We're having a baby."

He slipped outside into the rain, leaving her in shock behind. He was already putting the car in reverse and driving away from the house when mother opened the door, taking several steps forwards before she halted and just stood there.

He met her eyes one last time, her trembling form illuminated by the car's headlights, before he drove off.

Away from the place he had called his home for so many years.

Now it was no longer that.

* * *

The door opened before he could knock a second time and Naruto looked at him silently, his blue eyes roving across his body, before he ushered him inside, locking the door behind him.

Sasuke stood there, shivering despite the warmth lingering in the apartment, feeling as if he had been dunked into ice water. He couldn't even remember how he had got here; just that he had to see Naruto, had to be with him.

He startled when hands gently tugged his jacket down, over his arms and away from him. "I – I told them," he said numbly as Naruto hung the jacket on the lone peg next to the door.

The blond man didn't say anything as he knelt down and helped Sasuke remove his shoes.

"Told them and now I'm no longer welcome. I'm nothing but a faggot in his eyes now," Sasuke laughed bitterly, shaking his head, wondering again why he had expected anything else.

"Ssssh, I'm here," Naruto whispered and drew him to his bedroom where only a futon laid on the floor; the bed already having been transported to their new apartment.

Gentle hands helped him remove his clothes, exchanging them for a loose pair of sweats and a shirt. That done, Naruto padded around him to turn off the light, dipping the room into darkness. Then those same warm hands grabbed his and softly tugged him towards the futon, pushing him down. He went with the motion, lying down on the lumpy futon as Naruto crawled next to him, covering them with the one blanket he hadn't boxed up.

Strong arms surrounded him, cradled him against a warm chest. "I'm here," Naruto whispered again, pressing a soft kiss on Sasuke's forehead.

"I – I can't go back," Sasuke brought out and only now did reality fully sink in. He didn't have a family anymore; his parents no longer acknowledged his existence. All because he had been finally honest about who he was. He started shivering more violently, clutching the back of Naruto's shirt.

"I'm so sorry, Sasuke," Naruto said; his words as raw as Sasuke felt. He curled tighter around Sasuke, enveloping him in his warmth – like he had always done.

Sasuke shattered, weeping silent tears, wrapped up in the arms of the man he loved.

Outside the rain seemed like a reflection of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN2: I promise the rest of the story will be less angsty than this one ^^;
> 
> Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
> 
> I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
> 
> Cuddles
> 
> Melissa


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: This one is less angsty as the previous one, I promise.
> 
> Thank you for the comments and the kudos!
> 
> Warnings: Nothing really major, just a couple of time skips and Naruto's morning sickness popping up
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.
> 
> I hope you'll like this chapter!

_Chapter 3_

They left a couple of hours later.

The minute hand was just inching past twelve o'clock when Sasuke helped a sleepy Naruto sit down in his car. The rain had softened to a light drizzle; puddles gleamed in the orange glow of the streetlamps.

Perhaps it would be better to wait until morning had arrived before they left, but Sasuke couldn't stay here in this town any longer. Restlessness was buzzing underneath his skin like bees and if they didn't leave right now, he would go mad.

"Here," he murmured after he shut the door on his side. He showed Naruto his pillow and the blond smiled, leaning forwards so that Sasuke could put it behind his head. A blanket draped over him completed the picture. "Sleep. I'll wake you up when we're there."

"Hm, okay," Naruto murmured; speech slurred as he already started nodding off. He was out like a light barely a few seconds later.

He went to start the car and paused, glancing through the window up at the apartment building. All the windows at the front were dark now; everyone was asleep, tucked away in their beds or futons. Most likely this would be the last time he saw this building. He had entered through that door many times throughout these past couple of years; he probably had spent more time here than in his own house for these past years to be honest. It had been his home away from home.

He breathed out slowly, rubbing over his chin. Then he shook his head and started the car, reversing smoothly out of his parking spot. It was time to leave all of this behind and make a home somewhere else.

Without sparing the building another glance he drove away, leaving everything behind.

* * *

The late hour ensured there was barely any traffic and driving to their new apartment took up significantly less time than when they had made the trip on Monday. Nevertheless the closer they got to the city, the busier it became on the road. It wasn't the mad traffic rush yet, but it was clear that the city never truly slept.

They drove through brightly lit streets; the multicoloured lights danced across Naruto's face as he slept, but they didn't wake him up. The closer they got to the apartment, the more relaxed Sasuke became. With the distance increasing steadily, it was easy for now to forget the events of the evening. It was easy to set aside for a moment that he and Naruto were on their own from now on. No help from his parents would come; they would have to do everything themselves.

The late – or early, depending on how you looked at it – hour had as benefit that finding a parking spot wasn't a hellish undertaking as it had been on Monday. He was grateful for that. The confrontation with his parents had taken a lot out of him and the late hour was starting to catch up to him now. His eyes were starting to feel gritty and he just wanted to drop down and go to sleep.

He parked the car as close to the apartment building as he could and shut off the motor. As the motor cooled off, he removed his seatbelt and twisted around, placing his hand on Naruto's shoulder and shaking him gently.

"Hey, Naruto, we're here," he announced. He paused, waiting for a reaction, and when he didn't get one, he tapped Naruto's cheek a bit harder. "Wake up."

Naruto snorted, startling awake and his hand lashed out to smack the offensive hand away from his face. He straightened up, blinking dazed as he looked around. The blanket he had been covered with slipped down to his waist, pooling there.

"We're at the apartment?" he questioned, voice rough with sleep.

"Yeah, we are," Sasuke confirmed, opening his door. "Can you take the blanket and the pillow with you? I'll take the futon and the bag."

"Yeah, all right," Naruto mumbled, yawning and rubbing his eyes.

"You got the keys back?"

The blond man nodded, patting his right thigh. "Yeah, Kankuro stopped by right after you left to give them to me."

"Let's hope that idiot didn't fuck something up," Sasuke muttered darkly and stepped out, walking to the back to open the boot. He slung the bag around his shoulder and dragged out the larger bag containing the folded up futon. They could store that one in the closet, seeing as Naruto's bed was – hopefully – already installed in the bedroom.

Naruto was waiting on the footpath, the pillow and crumbled up blanket pressed against his chest. He was swaying lightly back and forth, clearly still not completely awake yet; his eyes half lidded as he stared dazedly at Sasuke.

"Come on, you idiot," Sasuke snorted, but his small smile was fond as he curled a hand around Naruto's upper arm and tugged him towards the apartment building.

"Not an idiot, bas-tard," Naruto muttered and his retort would have been more impressive if he hadn't started yawning halfway through.

The dark haired man just shook his head silently and paused in front of the door. It was made up almost entirely out of glass, allowing him a look at the hallway. "Give me the keys," he demanded, but already stuck his hand in Naruto's pocket to fish them out.

"Getting handsy, Sasuke?" Naruto quipped; the corners of his mouth twitching with amusement.

"You're too slow," Sasuke muttered and selected the bigger key out of the three dangling from the keyring, hoping it was the right one. He dumped the futon bag on the ground for now and squinted at the lock before digging his phone out of his pocket and using the lit up screen to push the key in directly. He pressed down on the doorknob and turned the key to the right simultaneously. There was a soft ' _click_ ' and then the door swung backwards, allowing them entrance.

He turned to look at the blond man, who looked more asleep than awake at the moment. His eyes were barely open and he was supporting his shoulder against the doorjamb.

"Do you think you can remain awake long enough to get into the lift and into the apartment?" Sasuke inquired, eyeing him thoughtfully.

"If I'm not, you're going to carry me?" Naruto shot back, opening his eyes further, blinking at his boyfriend.

"Not like I wouldn't be able to do it." The dark haired man shrugged. He had carried Naruto to his old apartment before when the idiot had become too drunk. That had been a year ago after Inuzuka's birthday party for which his sister had graciously gifted him with several bottles of sake. Being underage they wouldn't have got their hands legally on alcohol, but Inuzuka's sister had never been too bothered with minors drinking alcohol – as long as she didn't have to clean up the mess afterwards.

Naruto had had a bit too much then and it had been Sasuke's job to get him home safely. He had been pure dead weight, but Sasuke had still managed to get him into the apartment and into the bed without dropping him even once. He had been tempted to drop him, especially when Naruto had thought it prudent to blow his alcohol loaded breath right into Sasuke's face, but he hadn't done it. Naruto had paid for his restraint afterwards, but the point remained that he could pick up Naruto and carry him without dropping him.

Naruto chuckled, shuffling inside the small hallway. "Nah, no need. I'll be fine." He ignored his lover's sceptical look and ambled towards the lift. "You coming?" He turned his head, looking at Sasuke questioningly.

Sasuke locked the door and went to join Naruto in the lift, where the blond man was already resting his head against the mirror, blinking sleepily at his reflexion. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke pressed the number of their floor – the second one – and watched how the doors slid close with a quiet hiss. A slight jolt went through them when the carriage began to move and he placed the futon bag between his legs for the moment, rolling his shoulder a bit. The futon was heavier than he had expected.

A soft ' _ping_ ' announced they had arrived at their floor and they stepped out silently, both quite aware of the late hour. The last thing they needed now was to make noise and piss off their neighbours before they even managed to introduce themselves.

A dim light on the ceiling broke the complete darkness in the corridor, allowing them to walk to their apartment, which was the last one on the right, without tripping or walking into something.

Sasuke selected the second key from the keyring, unlocking the door to their apartment and waved Naruto inside first. Naruto took enough time to kick off his shoes, before wandering into the bedroom without even glancing around.

They would need to buy some curtains first, Sasuke noted absentmindedly, flicking his eyes towards the windows through which moonlight was pouring brightly, spilling over the floor and the multiple boxes dumped haphazardly all over the apartment. It was a wonder Naruto hadn't tripped over one of those boxes.

He exhaled loudly and locked the door behind him, dumping the bags he had been carrying against the wall. He would put those away in the morning. For now he put the keys into his jacket before removing that one and draping it across one of the boxes. He slipped out of his shoes and quietly padded into the bedroom.

Here it was darker than in the rest of the apartment, but some moonlight still spilt through. The bed had already been set up with mattress and all and Sasuke was reluctantly impressed. It appeared that Kankuro wasn't entirely useless.

His attention turned towards the man curled up in the middle of the bed. "At least get rid of your jeans first," Sasuke sighed, shaking his head tiredly.

Pulling the blanket back had Naruto groaning in protest, waving his arm around weakly, but Sasuke ignored that, instead helping the idiot out of his jeans. The button was slightly stubborn but Sasuke managed to remove that one with only the minimal of grumbling and then pulled down the zipper.

"Lift up your butt," he demanded and Naruto huffed, but complied, allowing the older man to take his jeans off. He dropped them next to the bed and removed his own, stepping out of them when the material pooled around his ankles.

"Move over," he muttered, stepping into the bed from the other side.

Naruto made a non-committal sound, but did so, shuffling closer to the edge, making space for the other man to join him. They wriggled around a bit to find a comfortable position. They ended up with Sasuke lying on his back and Naruto resting his head on his shoulder. One of Naruto's arms was wormed underneath Sasuke's back and the other was wrapped around his torso. With one leg thrown over Sasuke's thighs, effectively strapping him down, it was like being hugged by an octopus.

"If you kick me, I'm kicking you out of the bed," Sasuke muttered exhaustedly, draping one arm across Naruto's shoulders.

Naruto snorted. "Please, as if you would," he mumbled, voice becoming slurred with sleep. He patted Sasuke's waist underneath the blanket. "Just go to sleep, bastard. We have a couple of busy days ahead of us."

"Don't think you can wriggle your way out of unpacking," Sasuke warned him, but sleep was already tugging at his consciousness, begging him to give in. The couple of hours of sleep he had caught earlier seemed to have only made him sleepier and he blinked tiredly, staring blearily at the ceiling.

A hand landed on his mouth for a brief second. "Sssh, now. Sleep," Naruto murmured.

He said something else, something unintelligible, but Sasuke was already asleep.

* * *

Dropping the empty cardboard box next to him on the floor, he picked up another box and placed it on the kitchen table. It felt rather light and he wondered what Naruto had packed inside this one. Pillows maybe? Some clothes? He pulled back the flaps and –

Stared right at a collection of ramen cups.

He stared and stared and kept staring, hoping that the content would miraculously turn into something else if he just gazed at it long enough. No such luck.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he leant back against the counter with a growl. "Did you seriously pack up ramen?!"

Naruto popped his head inside the kitchen; blue eyes swivelling back and forth between the damned box and Sasuke. "Well, yeah," he said slowly, looking at Sasuke as if he was stupid. "Why wouldn't I?"

"You packed up ramen," Sasuke enunciated, scowling at the younger man.

"Of course I did! I wasn't going to throw those cups out!" Naruto huffed, entering the kitchen fully and pulling the box to him. "I might as well throw my money through the drain then! Besides, as long as I can still eat ramen, I'm going to! Who knows when the little bean decides to act up?"

"Little bean? Really?" Sasuke asked exasperatedly, dropping his hand.

Naruto pulled a face. "What? It's not like the baby's that big yet. We also don't know yet what it's going to be, so little bean it is for now."

The dark haired man shook his head, not feeling up to getting into an argument about something as silly as a nickname for their baby, and instead decided to focus on the important issue. He held up one finger. "You can eat one ramen cup each week. No more than that."

Naruto stared at him blankly; both his arms practically cradling the box with ramen against his chest. "I'm sorry, what? I thought I heard you say I can only eat ramen once a week," he scoffed, narrowing his eyes.

"Ramen's not healthy," Sasuke reminded him tersely, crossing his arms. "You're not taking care of only yourself anymore, so you need to start eating healthier."

"Ramen isn't that bad, bastard," Naruto retorted petulantly, pouting rather fiercely.

"Bad enough for a baby," Sasuke riposted just as stubbornly. He pointed towards one of the cupboards. "Put those cups there. We'll go shopping later for some actual food."

"Your papa is becoming quite the control freak," Naruto said conversationally, abandoning the box in favour of poking his stomach.

The man in question snorted, though he couldn't quell the fondness in his voice when he replied, "Someone has to be the one with good sense here and we both know who isn't going to be that."

Ever the mature one, Naruto stuck out his tongue before opening the cupboard and stacking his cups inside carefully.

Leaving Naruto to his precious ramen collection, Sasuke walked into the living room to unpack the rest of their stuff. They still needed to buy curtains and actual food that wasn't ramen and he wanted everything done before he would have to go to university this Sunday for the opening of the new academic year.

Right as he set about hanging some pictures of Naruto's friends on the wall – ignoring the pang in his chest as a voice in the back of his mind reminded him that he didn't have any pictures to hang up of his own – Naruto popped up next to him, bracing his arm on Sasuke's shoulder.

Digging his finger into Sasuke's forearm, he said darkly, "I know how many cups I brought with me, so I'll know if you try to throw any of them away. Keep that in mind, Sasuke."

With that ominous sounding warning, the blond wandered off to their bedroom, presumably to unpack whatever was still in boxes there.

Sasuke merely shook his head and returned his attention to the picture frames. These weren't going to stick to the walls on their own after all.

* * *

He pushed the cart through the aisle containing bottles of sauce and dry pasta. "Did you tell Gaara about the baby?" he inquired, forcing himself to sound casual.

Cerulean blue eyes flickered towards him for a moment before Naruto went back to checking the dates on some boxes of pasta. "No, I didn't," he said in a low voice. "I'm still only ten weeks along; didn't feel right yet."

Sasuke was silent, gathering his thoughts. When he spoke again, they were turning into an aisle dedicated to sweets; the brightly coloured packaging beaming at them from both sides. "Are you going to tell your friends?"

A hand stilled on top of a roll of chocolate biscuits. "I don't know," Naruto admitted slowly, biting his lip. He rolled his shoulders, clearly feeling awkward. "I'm just … I'm not in the mood to deal with their reactions. I'd like to keep it a secret for as long as possible, if you don't mind." Blue eyes peered up at him, regarding him with worry.

"Fine with me. I'm not exactly in the mood to deal with them either," Sasuke sniffed disdainfully. He tolerated those idiots for Naruto's sake, but that was as far as he was willing to go.

The blond man quirked a quick smile before he grimaced and looked away. "Did you – did you tell Itachi-niisan?"

Sasuke stiffened before forcing himself to relax, exhaling slowly. "No, I haven't," he answered neutrally. "I've been busy with unpacking, remember? And yesterday I drove over to you directly."

Naruto pursed his lips, hesitating before he blurted out, "Are you going to tell him?"

Sasuke hunched up his shoulders defensively, shifting his glance towards the light yellow tiles on the floor. "Not sure. I don't know what they're going to tell him."

Warm fingers slipped around his right wrist, squeezing gently. "I think he'd accept you. Us," Naruto murmured, looking at him intently.

"Maybe," Sasuke allowed. "Maybe not. We'll see."

Naruto nodded and threw the roll of biscuits into the cart. "Come on, let's get some drinks next."

* * *

Sunday dawned with a grey sky and light drizzle coating everything in a fine, wet sheen.

It was still early; there was no need for him to get up already and so he lingered in the bed, staring out of the window at the sky. Naruto was still asleep, clutching his chest like he was cuddling with a giant stuffed toy. His blond hair tickled his collarbone, but he didn't push him away.

Naruto had been incredibly nauseous yesterday and it had taken him a long time to fall asleep, despite having tired himself out by constantly running to the bathroom to throw up. During the afternoon Sasuke had placed a bucket next to him on the couch to make it easier on the blond. The pregnant man had only been able to digest some crackers and some tea and Sasuke hoped he would feel better today.

Naruto had insisted his nausea was normal, but Sasuke had already mentally mapped out the route to the nearest hospital. Sure, nausea was a normal side effect in a pregnancy – as Naruto had obnoxiously pointed out in several articles he had pulled up between his bouts of throwing up his guts. Sasuke, however, also knew that excessive nausea would lead to dehydration or worse and that was not a scenario he was ready to visit any time soon.

So despite lying in a somewhat uncomfortable position, he wasn't ready yet to move, figuring the more rest Naruto got, the better. The official introduction at the university started at ten, so he still had plenty of time left before he had to leave. He would have three more days off after this and then classes would start.

He'd have to start looking for a job tomorrow. He still had some money saved up, but that wouldn't be nearly enough to cover next month's rent nor the bills or the groceries – or Naruto's check-ups. That was something else they would need to do soon: find a good doctor.

Dark eyes flickered down when Naruto shifted his head, rubbing his face against his chest with a stifled groan. Sasuke waited, wondering whether the other man would wake up. There was a pause and then Naruto rolled away onto his back. He raised both hands to rub over his face and yawned.

"Late is it?" he mumbled drowsily. He lowered his hands on his chest and blinked, clearly far from being completely awake yet.

Sasuke turned his head to check the clock. "Six fifteen," he answered and smirked when Naruto groaned loudly in dismay.

"God, why the hell am I awake so early?" he whined, sounding incredibly put out.

Sasuke shrugged, turning to lie on his side facing the blond now that there was no longer a weight pinning him down. "You woke up on your own," he said idly, sliding his hand underneath the blanket to palm Naruto's right hip.

"No shit," Naruto grumbled, squinting at the window. "Is it raining?"

"A little bit, yeah. How are you feeling?"

"At the moment, okay. Might be a good day today." Naruto blinked at him. "You have to go to the university today, right?"

"Hm. Starts at ten, but I should be back within two, three hours tops."

"Classes start on the fifth, hm?"

"Yeah. Yours too?"

"Yep, though I guess it's best if I log on earlier to find out what kind of material I need."

He rubbed slow circles around Naruto's hip, slipping underneath his pyjama trousers to feel warm skin. "We can buy everything tomorrow or on Tuesday. I still have a couple of books I need to buy too," he remarked.

"You still got some time left before you have to get up, hm?"

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at the non sequitur question. "I do, yeah," he murmured, watching with growing interest how Naruto sat up, running a hand through his wild bed hair before he swung a leg over Sasuke, wriggling around until he straddled Sasuke's thighs.

"I thought you hated being awake this early?" Sasuke commented amused, but his hands were already running over strong thighs, feeling muscles bunch underneath his touch.

Naruto bent down; a smirk playing around his lips. "Well, it does have some benefits," he hummed before slotting their mouths together.

They both had morning breath of course, but that didn't deter them at all. In fact their kiss quickly deepened, the tips of their tongues touching each other as they shifted around; Naruto using one hand to support his weight while the other slipped around Sasuke's neck to hold him there. Sasuke nipped Naruto's lower lip and was rewarded with a soft moan. Their hips started rolling together, them rubbing against each other with only a couple of layers separating them from feeling each other completely.

Sasuke's hands shifted around, palming Naruto's arse cheeks, which elicited a noise of approval. As his mouth slipped to Naruto's neck to kiss him there, his fingers played with the waistband of the pyjama trousers, tugging them lower slowly. Right when he was about to pull them down, Naruto suddenly tore away and rushed out of the room before Sasuke could even gather his bearings.

A tad stunned at the blond's sudden departure, Sasuke blinked up at the ceiling, running his hands through his hair. He tugged at the strands in slight frustration, forcing himself to calm down – though a particular part of his lower body clearly disagreed with that notion – and stood up, sliding his feet into his slippers. He left the room, having an inkling as to where Naruto could have gone all of a sudden.

He was right. He found the blond man on his knees in front of the toilet, his head practically in it as he gagged and threw up; his face becoming red with the exertion.

Pursing his lips at the sight, Sasuke walked past him and filled a glass with cold water. Next he wetted a washcloth, holding it underneath the running water until it was completely soaked. He wrung it out, getting rid of the excess moisture, and placed it in Naruto's neck, letting it cool him down.

Naruto heaved again and then kept kneeling in front of the toilet, breathing heavily. Blond strands were plastered against his forehead and temples and Sasuke brushed them back, feeling the tackiness sticking to his hand.

"Think you can drink this?" he questioned, crouching down and holding the glass of water up.

Blue eyes squinted at him before focusing on the glass and with a groan, Naruto sat up, straightening his back. The washcloth fell on the floor with a wet _'smack'_.

"Thanks," he rasped, taking careful sips of the water. He stood up and took a couple of unsteady steps towards the sink where he set down the glass and started brushing his teeth.

Sasuke rose up too and closed the lid of the toilet before flushing it. "I'll make you some breakfast," he said and the blond nodded, still vigorously brushing his teeth.

Well, if Sasuke had just thrown up the entire content of his stomach, he'd be desperately brushing his teeth as well.

* * *

It had stopped raining for now and weak daylight illuminated the apartment. Soft footsteps sounded above them; their upstairs neighbour was clearly awake too. As Sasuke set about making toast and preparing tea, his ears caught the sound of rushing water: the shower.

For a few seconds heat flickered up once more in his lower belly and his fingers twitched when he thought about Naruto in the shower, before shaking his head decisively. The day might have started out with that, but after throwing up, his lover wouldn't be in the mood anymore. That was understandable of course, but well, it still sucked a bit.

He was setting the table when Naruto appeared in the doorway, his hair still dripping, and a sheepish smile plastered on his face.

"That was not how I imagined our morning to go," he admitted chagrined, plopping down in the chair when Sasuke gestured at it.

The dark haired man shrugged. "Not like you have control over it," he said calmly, setting a cup of hot tea in front of the blond and placing a couple of slices of toast on the plate. He took the seat opposite from Naruto, bringing his own tea and toast with him.

Naruto wrinkled his nose, poking the toast petulantly. "Yeah well, I'll be extremely happy once this part is finished."

"We'll look up some of the doctors on your list when I come back," Sasuke said, taking a bit from his toast. "You're due for a check-up soon anyway and we can ask whether there's something to prevent the morning sickness."

"It's going to be a busy week," Naruto sighed, finally eating his own toast.

Something they would have to get used to, Sasuke assumed.

* * *

The dean – a pale man with long, dark hair and slanted eyes – kept droning on and on. To be honest Sasuke had no clue what he was talking about, having zoned out five minutes after the man started talking.

It wasn't anything important anyway; just some bullshit about how he hoped they would find their place at this university and how they would be able to discover and develop their potential here.

**You holding up?** he texted, keeping his phone in his lap. Several other people were discreetly busying themselves with their phones as well; some didn't even bother pretending they were listening to the dean.

**If you mean my intestines are still where they're supposed to be, then yes,** Naruto replied, managing to sound snarky, even through a god damn text.

**10.38 a.m. Me**

**Excuse me for being concerned**

**10.40 a.m. Usuratonkachi**

**Aw, you're so sweet. Aren't you supposed to be paying attention? Meeting's not done yet, right?**

**10.40 a.m. Me**

**Boring talk**

Had he really sacrificed his Sunday for this? He was pretty certain he could find the whole speech back on the website of the university. At least he still had a couple of days off after this before classes would start.

He still didn't know how he would juggle both his studies and a job, but he would figure something out. It wasn't like he was the first student to combine those two after all. Thank god he still had his scholarship, though. That was at least one expense less that he had to worry about.

"That said, I wish you all a good break! Enjoy it, so that you can start your classes with a clear mind!" the dean finished his speech and bowed his head.

Instantly people started clapping and chattering filled the air; one by one the chairs were emptied as everyone was eager to leave and enjoy their break before university would really start.

**Meeting's done; I'm coming home** _,_ he sent to Naruto and received a text filled with kissing emojis in return.

Sasuke snorted, shaking his head at the ridiculous emojis, and slipped his phone into his pocket, following the mass of students to the entrance. The sun had escaped the clouds and was doing its best to warm everyone up; the scent of cherry blossoms filling the air. Hm, maybe he and Naruto could have a picnic one of these days underneath the sakura trees? That would be a good way to relax before they would have to start studying again.

"Uchiha, is that you?"

Sasuke stiffened at the sound of that voice. Wait, he was enrolled here too? Slowly he turned around and yes, there the idiot stood grinning with his arms crossed behind his head. His ever faithful companion in the form of his dog Akamaru stood pressed against his left leg, lolling his tongue out and panting happily. Not that much difference with his human master actually.

"Inuzuka," he said neutrally. The brown haired man was more Naruto's friend than his. He tolerated him for Naruto's sake, but the amount of idiocy that dog lover could sprout was unbelievable at times.

Inuzuka approached him, still grinning that stupid grin. "Figured I'd find you here," he said, squinting when the sun hit him in his face.

"I'm surprised to see you here," Sasuke retorted, crossing his arms.

Sharp black eyes regarded him suspiciously. "Is that meant to be insulting?"

That was just too easy. Sasuke sighed, tilting his head to the right. "Was there a reason you called out to me?"

"Can't I just be friendly?" Inuzuka huffed, looking offended.

The black haired man merely raised an eyebrow and Inuzuka looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. He stared at a tree, seemingly content to just keep standing there and not say anything.

"Tch." Sasuke turned around, intent on continuing his trek to the apartment.

"All right!" Inuzuka said hastily and Sasuke twisted around again reluctantly. "You're still in regular contact with Naruto, right?"

"Yeah, of course." Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows. "You aren't?"

Inuzuka grimaced, running a hand through his hair. "He hasn't been answering any of my texts lately. I wanted to ask whether you and Naruto wanted to meet up with the rest of us before classes really starts to kick our arses, you know?"

"Sure, I'll ask him," Sasuke said neutrally. He hadn't even been aware Naruto had been ignoring other people's messages. Granted, their minds had been elsewhere these past few weeks.

Inuzuka grinned, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Next to him Akamaru started waggling his tail almost violently. "Thanks, Uchiha. Say, you have a dorm or so?"

Sasuke was spared from answering when a girl called out excitedly, "There you are, Kiba-kun!"

She latched onto his arm with her breasts pressed up against his forearm. Her short, black hair with pink highlights gleamed in the sunlight. "Come on now! We're going to the sushi bar, remember?"

"I remember, don't worry," Inuzuka grinned and winked at her. His arm slipped around her lithe waist while Akamaru walked to his other side with a short huff. "I'll see you around, Uchiha. Tell Naruto I said hi!"

He disappeared into the mass, tugged along by the girl, who could walk surprisingly fast given how tall her heels were. Well, at least she had spared him from more uncomfortable questions.

* * *

"You didn't tell Inuzuka that we're renting an apartment?" he questioned, locking the door behind him. He slipped out of shoes and exchanged them for his house slippers, hanging his jacket on the peg next to Naruto's.

Naruto looked up from whatever show he was watching on his laptop and blinked, lowering his headphones. He was sitting cross legged on the couch with an opened package of salty crackers next to his hip. "No, I didn't. Only Gaara knows about it. And well, Kankuro, considering he drove our stuff here," he added, letting the headphones dangle around his neck.

He cocked his head and gazed at the dark haired man curiously. "Why? I didn't think you'd want people to just keep barging in here if they knew we're renting an apartment."

Not to mention keeping quiet about the baby would be difficult if people kept visiting them.

"Ran into that idiot just now."

"Kiba's not an idiot, bastard."

"He said you've been ignoring his messages," Sasuke continued, serenely ignoring the interruption. He walked to the couch, leaning down to kiss Naruto who tilted his head up, before he sat down next to him.

"Ah shit," Naruto sighed and grimaced. "Yeah, I meant to reply to the text he sent me a couple of days ago, but it slipped my mind with all the unpacking we did. Did he say why he texted me?"

"Just that he wants to meet up with the entire group before classes really start," Sasuke replied, plucking a salty cracker from the package.

Naruto cocked his head in thought, worrying his lip between his teeth before shrugging. "Well, I still have a few months before I really start showing, so meeting them won't be a problem."

"You're not going to drink any alcohol," Sasuke said sharply, remembering all too well that the last couple of gatherings had practically been drenched in alcohol.

Cerulean blue eyes rolled exasperatedly and the owner of them huffed. "Of course not. I'm not stupid! Now help me decide which doctor we're going to choose."

* * *

"Any luck with finding a job so far?" Naruto murmured, turning the page of his book. He was lying down on the couch with his head in Sasuke's lap.

The laptop was balanced on the arm of the couch and Sasuke's own book was spread out next to him, several parts of the text already highlighted or underlined. It was Friday and classes had started a week ago.

"No, nothing so far," Sasuke said, switching his attention between the page of his book and the webpage on the screen detailing several job advertisements. Finding a decent part-time job near their place which wouldn't conflict with the hours he spent in class was proving to be more difficult than he had expected.

He didn't want to wait too long with finding a job either, because Naruto's check-up was scheduled for next Saturday and the doctor they had decided upon after hours of discussion wasn't a particularly cheap one. She had a stellar reputation, was even hailed as the best of the country with a specialisation in pregnant men and Sasuke only wanted the best care for his lover and their baby, but naturally that excellent care came with a price tag.

Naruto raised his legs, letting the book rest against his thighs. "I've got an interview next Monday for the library a few blocks down," he said, rubbing his thumb along the edge of the book cover.

Sasuke looked up at the ceiling and frowned. "The one with those children's drawings on the windows?"

"Yeah, that one. The owner is an old lady and she seems quite sweet."

"How late does she - " Sasuke was cut off by his phone ringing; the sound unexpectedly loud and sharp.

Naruto sat up and Sasuke raised his hips so that he could wiggle his phone out of his pocket.

"Who is it?" Naruto asked curiously, resting a finger between his closed book.

Dark eyes flicked down to the glowing screen. Abruptly Sasuke's stomach churned and he stared at the name glaring right back at him.

_Itachi._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN2: See, less angst this time! Sometimes I do keep my promises LOL
> 
> Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
> 
> I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
> 
> Cuddles
> 
> Melissa


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I haven't been exactly in the best of moods this week, which is why this chapter is so late. My apologies for that, but I tried to finish it as quickly as I could - which happens to be at nearly one thirty in the morning =_= Don't follow my example; I'm an idiot, clearly.
> 
> Thank you so much for all your comments and kudos! I'm so happy to see this story is already close to getting 300 kudos! :O
> 
> Warnings: smidgen of angst; blow job; deep throating; fluff
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it. I'm just obsessed with the series, clearly.
> 
> I hope you'll like this chapter!

_Chapter 4_

It was as if he was doused in ice; all he could do was stare frozen at the screen, feeling the phone vibrate again and again in his hand as the ringtone blared on. His brother was not going to hang up anytime soon, huh?

"Sasuke?" Naruto's worried voice pricked through his thoughts and he whipped his head around, staring at the blond. "Everything okay?"

"It's – my brother's calling me," he mumbled through numb lips; his eyes shifting back towards the brightly lit screen.

"Oh." Naruto looked taken aback before he bit down on his lip and rose up from the couch. "Eh, I'll give you some privacy, okay? I'll be in our bedroom." He hurried towards the bedroom before Sasuke could even say something.

Well, it wasn't like he had much choice, was it? If he didn't accept the call now, Itachi would just keep calling back, again and again. Had he talked to their parents? Did he know Sasuke was no longer part of the family? If so … What would Itachi think of that?

His big brother had always been there, right in front of him. Someone he had idolised for years, whom he had strived to be like. Whose attention he had desperately craved, sometimes even worse than his longing for Fugaku to acknowledge him. Itachi had always been the golden boy, the perfect son and heir. The one who could do no wrong, the one destined for great things.

Compared to him Sasuke had been a spare, good, but not good enough, forever doomed to linger in the shadows of his older brother.

In spite of being favoured, though, Itachi had never made Sasuke feel like he was lesser than him, had never made him feel like he was less worth than the older boy. In fact, Itachi had always tried to spend as much time with him as he could. He had been constantly swamped with work and yet he had always found the time to play with his brother, to give him his attention. There was no reason to think he would suddenly behave otherwise, but …

He also didn't know what Itachi thought about queer people. That was one subject he had never breached with his brother and the thought that Itachi had heard it from their parents, that he might even feel disgusted by him now …

It _terrified_ him.

His stomach in knots, he accepted the call and lifted the phone to his ear with trembling fingers. "Yeah?"

" _So you are still alive,"_ Itachi said dryly. _"I was already starting to think something had happened. You usually never take this long to pick up the phone."_

He sounded normal, not disgusted, but Sasuke reminded himself that Itachi had always been a master at cloaking his real feelings. Fugaku had always resorted to a blank mask to hide his emotions, but Itachi had become quite adept at using whatever tone he thought would suit the situation. He was like an actor in that aspect, able to fool everyone with the right tone and look on his face. That also made him more of a threat than Fugaku had been, because it left Sasuke floundering, wondering whether his brother knew about him or not.

"Ever considered I was busy studying?" he retorted snidely; his brother's light taunt evoking that kind of reaction as it always did.

Itachi hummed. _"How are your classes so far? University started around a week ago, right?"_

"They're not fucking around," Sasuke said bluntly; his gaze straying towards the open book next to him. "But that's to be expected, of course. The workload is doable for now, though."

" _Made new friends yet?"_ Itachi asked teasingly and there was the sound of him tapping on his keyboard in the background; a steady rhythm despite the fact that he was calling his brother.

"Fuck off," Sasuke huffed, used to that by now.

Itachi had always been rather amused with how standoffish his younger brother was, teasing him whenever he could about his apparent lack of social skills. Underneath that amusement, though, had also been the worry about his younger brother preferring to be alone all the time. It wasn't healthy, he had admonished him, urging him to at least seek out one person in his class to hang out with.

Sasuke was pretty sure that Itachi had been on the verge of throwing an actual party the day he had brought Naruto home with him and had introduced him as his best friend.

" _How's Naruto-kun doing?"_ Itachi inquired suddenly.

The younger man stiffened, his heartbeat loud in his ears, as he wondered whether that question was really as loaded as it sounded like.

" _Is he handling the workload better now?"_

A huff of laughter, underlined with relief, escaped him and he ran a hand through his hair. "Depends on how you look at it, I suppose," he said. "Pretty sure he's thinking about procrastinating again."

" _Well, he wouldn't be him if he didn't at least think about doing that,"_ Itachi murmured amused.

Despite the general light-hearted tone of their conversation, there was dread building up in his stomach, anticipating the moment Itachi would lash out at him. He didn't want all this nice talk, the questions about his classes, if it meant that at the end Itachi would tell him to no longer contact him.

"Is there a particular reason you're calling me?" The question escaped his lips before he could think twice about it and he thumped his head back in frustration as the knots in his stomach grew worse. Yeah, why not give him an opening?

" _I wanted to know how you're doing,"_ Itachi answered calmly. _"Our parents apparently haven't heard from you since you moved into the dorms, so I took it upon me to find out whether you're still alive or not."_

_Haven't heard of me?_ They actually had said that? No, he realised with a wan smile. It must have been Mikoto who had fabricated that lie. There was no way Fugaku would forego the opportunity to inform his oldest son that he was an only child from now on as far as he was concerned.

Itachi also knew that if he wanted any information about his younger brother, he'd have to go to Mikoto because Fugaku had made it clear long ago that he wasn't too interested in Sasuke's life.

That might be Sasuke's only saving grace right now. As long as Itachi hadn't talked to Fugaku directly, there was a chance he didn't know yet Sasuke had been kicked out for being gay.

"Well, clearly I'm still alive," he said, tapping his pencil against his book. "No need to create a search party for me, really."

Itachi huffed out a laugh. _"Well, that's good to hear. Don't overwork yourself too much, all right?"_

"Don't worry, Naruto makes sure I get enough distraction," Sasuke replied dryly and grimaced then, hoping it didn't sound that much like an innuendo.

" _Good to know I can count on him to make sure you don't go overboard,"_ Itachi chuckled. There was a brief pause as he talked with someone in the background. When he came back, he sounded apologetic when he said, _"I have to go now, my meeting will start in five minutes. I'll talk to you soon again, though. And otouto: you can call me too, you know."_

"Yeah, I know," Sasuke said softly, but couldn't help but wonder whether Itachi would still say that if he knew everything.

" _Tell Naruto-kun I said hello, okay? Talk to you soon."_

"I will. Bye nii-san." He breathed out slowly as the beeping sound on the other end of the line announced that Itachi had ended the phone call.

So far it seemed that Itachi had no idea Sasuke had been kicked out of the family. A master at disguising his true feelings he might be, he wouldn't have just left the conversation at that if he knew what had happened. He had no idea how long that reprieve would last, but for now he would take it.

The bedroom door creaked slightly when it was opened and Naruto appeared in the doorway, looking a bit apprehensive. "How did it go?" he asked cautiously.

"I don't think he knows what happened," Sasuke answered contemplatively. "They apparently told him they hadn't heard of me in a while so he called to check up on me."

"Mikoto told him that?" Naruto furrowed his eyebrows, sitting down on the couch again, pulling his legs up.

Sasuke smiled wryly, finding some dark amusement in the fact that Naruto as well immediately assumed that Mikoto had told Itachi that lie. No doubt Fugaku would have relished in informing his oldest son that he was the only legitimate heir left.

"I assume so, yes. I doubt Fugaku would have lied about that."

"You're going to tell him soon?" There was no judgement or frustration in Naruto's voice, only honest curiosity and it had Sasuke gripping his hand.

"Not sure yet, but yeah. Not like I can keep this hidden from him forever," Sasuke muttered, staring down at his laptop. Either he told his brother or Fugaku would inform him eventually.

He didn't know which prospect scared him the most.

"It'll be fine," Naruto said, squeezing his hand and smiling reassuringly at him. "Fugaku is an arsehole, but I really believe Itachi will react differently."

"Maybe," Sasuke mumbled and shook his head then. "Anyway, you said you have an interview next Monday?"

The look Naruto gave him was a knowing one, but nevertheless he complied with the unspoken request and started telling him about the request for help he'd seen plastered onto one of the windows of the library when he had walked past it on his way to the store.

As Sasuke listened to him, a part of him wondered how much longer Itachi would remain in the dark.

* * *

On Monday evening after his last class finished, Sasuke forwent the bus and instead made his way to the library on foot. Naruto should be finished with his interview by the time he arrived and he figured it would be nice to return home together.

A paper stuck to the window of a local coffee shop attracted his attention and he furrowed his eyebrows, stopping to read it.

**HELP WANTED**

_Student job: looking for extra help during the evenings. Four to five hours every day. Morning shifts can be discussed. No previous experience required._

_For more information, ask for Kakashi inside._

Eyes narrowing slightly, Sasuke took in the outside of the shop. It was called the Silver Hawk for some reason, which he personally thought was a strange name for a coffee shop. The blackboard next to the door advertised a triple hot chocolate and a bergamot orange flavoured tea. A hawk mid-flight was drawn right underneath it.

The outside of the shop was quite minimalistic; the name of it in regular capital black letters, but when he peeked inside, he spotted cosy looking couches in the corners and round tables scattered throughout. There appeared to even be a small bookcase next to one of the couches. Some girls had taken over some of the couches, laughing and scrolling down on their phone as they sipped from their orders.

Sasuke took one more look at the flyer and sighed, wondering whether he was really going to do this. He had no idea how to prepare anything more than some hot chocolate – courtesy of Naruto – a simple coffee and some tea. He was definitely not a people person, preferred for everyone to leave him alone as a matter of fact.

But they needed the money and if this coffee shop was looking for a student to fill in, they at least wouldn't act difficult about his class hours. No experience required meant he didn't have to worry about that either. Honestly, this was the best option he had so far, so he might as well try it.

Gripping the strap of his backpack, he pushed open the door; a bell somewhere announcing his arrival. A red haired girl with one side shaved off stood behind the register; the rest of her hair falling loose across her shoulder. The eyeliner she wore was rather thick and she had a stud in her nostril and a small golden ring looped in her lower lip.

Her black tank top was covered by a dark green short and the silver pendant of her necklace dangled in the air when she leant forwards to hand a steaming mug to a young guy, laughing as she did so.

There was a display case filled with several types of cakes, pastries and even some pre-prepared bento; each price tag was decorated by silver leaves.

She turned towards him the second he approached the register; her crimson eyes lightening up with interest the second her gaze landed on him. "Why hello there, what can I get for you?" she asked, almost purring the words, as she leant towards him, showing off her cleavage.

He jerked his thumb at the flyer. "I'm here for the ad. It said I needed to talk to someone called Kakashi?"

"Oh, you want to work here?" She looked absolutely gleeful at that. "Wait here a moment, I'll get him for you."

She went through a white painted door which was right behind the register. He remained standing there, acutely aware of the gazes of some of the girls behind him, who were whispering and giggling to themselves. He resolutely ignored them like he did every time someone showed interest in him. Even if he hadn't been together with Naruto, he never had had any interest in girls, so they wouldn't have made a chance anyway.

The red haired girl appeared again, opening the little door which closed off the register part from the rest of the shop. "Just go through that white door, Kakashi's waiting for you," she grinned, waving him through. "Good luck with your interview!"

"Thanks," he muttered, figuring it would be in his best interest to remain polite, even if she still looked a bit too interested. Whatever, if this worked out, he would just have to make it clear to her that he wasn't single.

When he walked into the backroom, he was brought up short by the man who greeted him with a lazy wave of his hand. His hair was a shocking white grey and the lower half of his face was covered by a dark blue mask. Allergies perhaps? He wore black jeans and a sleeveless grey cardigan over an olive green shirt.

"Yo, Karin told me you're here for the ad we posted?" the man – Kakashi – said, sitting up in his chair. A notebook was open on the desk behind him, together with a laptop displaying Excel sheets.

"Yes, I saw you were looking for a student, so this job would work well with my class hours," Sasuke replied, a bit bemused at the nonchalant manner of the man. "I'm Uchiha Sasuke."

Kakashi nodded thoughtfully and scratched the back of his head. "Name's Kakashi Hatake. You got any experience?"

"Not much, but the ad mentioned it wasn't necessary."

"It's not," Kakashi confirmed. "But you'd have to come in for at least one weekend so we can show you the ropes so to speak, teach you how to prepare the drinks and how to work the register. You got any work experience in general?"

"I did some filing work at a company during the last two summers," Sasuke replied.

It had actually been at Fugaku's company; he had probably attempted to make Sasuke interested in working at the company just like his older brother was doing. It had been rather boring work, but it had paid quite well, so in the end he hadn't complained about it much.

"Filing is definitely different from pouring hot drinks," Kakashi remarked, leaning back in his chair. "So why apply for this job?"

"You want an honest answer?"

Kakashi huffed amused. "I would appreciate honesty, yes."

"Because I need the money," Sasuke answered bluntly. He could try to come up with some bullshit reason, but really, why would anyone need a job? Because they needed money, plain and simple.

"Already in debt at your young age?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"No, I need to support my boyfriend and myself. We're on our own," Sasuke admitted honestly. "Seeing as we're both still studying, though, finding a job hasn't been easy."

"No, I guess it wouldn't be," Kakashi murmured thoughtfully.

It was quiet for a moment, in which Sasuke wondered whether he should hand over his resume. He had a copy of it in his backpack actually.

"You know what? I appreciate your honesty, so I'm hiring you," Kakashi decided out of the blue. "You look like someone who won't mess around, so come back this Saturday in the afternoon and we'll show you how it's done here. Consider next week as your trial week. If that goes well, you'll be fully hired in two weeks. How about that? That good with you?"

"Fine with me," Sasuke replied, secretly relieved that this interview hadn't turned out to be a complete disaster.

Filling coffee orders wasn't exactly his dream job, but it would ensure they wouldn't be thrown out of the apartment after just a couple of months, so he was more than willing to do this. Hell, he would fucking smile the entire shift as long as he and Naruto wouldn't have to worry about money again.

"Then I'm looking forward to seeing you this Saturday. Good luck with your studies," Kakashi said and the corners of his eyes wrinkled when he smiled.

"Thank you, you have a great evening still," Sasuke said politely and opened the door again, nearly bumping into the red haired girl – Karin, Kakashi had said.

She grinned at him, hooking her thumbs around the loops of her jeans. "So? Did the interview go well?" she asked curiously.

"I'll be here on Saturday to learn how to do everything," he confirmed.

"Well, I'm definitely looking forward to seeing you again," she said, her grin widening, before her attention was drawn to a new customer showing up.

Sasuke took advantage of that to leave the shop, still a bit in disbelief that he had somehow managed to land a job this easily after days of searching fruitlessly on the internet. Sure, it was still only a trial week next week, but it was a lot more than he expected to have when he woke up this morning.

"I got the job!" was the first thing that left Naruto's mouth when Sasuke arrived at the library. His cheeks were flushed as he hurried down the steps and he rubbed them when he stopped in front of the dark haired man. "Shit, but that was so stressful! She might be old, but she's definitely not a pushover! I've got the Wednesday afternoon shift, Friday evening and a full shift on Sunday. I had to be honest about the baby, because it's not like I'll be able to hide it for long anymore, but she was completely fine with it! How was your day?"

Sasuke had to smile at the waterfall of words leaving the blond's lips, a clear sign that in spite of his nerves, he was excited about this job. "Fine, I actually just got hired at the coffee shop, the one closest to my university. It's called the Silver Hawk."

"You're going to work at a coffee shop?" Naruto was clearly trying to bite down on a grin, but his eyes started to sparkle with mirth and Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, make fun of me, I know you want to."

"Well, be honest, it's not like you're really the type to work in customer service," Naruto teased, linking their hands together.

"I can be friendly if I need to be," Sasuke argued and they started walking home.

"Of course you can be," Naruto said placatingly and quickly pecked his cheek. "And you're going to be amazing at this, I just know it."

"You're having way too much fun with this," Sasuke sighed.

"Well, you have to admit it's kind of funny: me working at the library and you in a coffee shop. Most people who knows us would assume it'd be the opposite," Naruto pointed out.

"You're already active enough as it is, best to keep you away from any caffeinated drinks," Sasuke retorted, grunting when Naruto pinched his side.

"If you're already this grumpy after just the interview, I don't dare to imagine how bad it will be when you have to smile pretty for the customers," Naruto snorted.

"How bad I will be? How about how bad you will be after having to keep quiet for several hours on end?" Sasuke shot back, smirking when Naruto gasped affronted.

"You're a dick," Naruto informed him with a pout.

"I am? And here I was thinking about ordering some ramen for us tonight, to celebrate the both of us getting a job," Sasuke smirked, keeping his eyes on the road instead of the man next to him.

"You cannot say that and not go through with it!" Naruto whined, clutching at his shirt. "That would make you a very, very cruel boyfriend and you don't want to be that, right?"

"I thought I was a dick?" Sasuke riposted innocently.

"Sasuke, I will suck your dick if you order ramen for us tonight," Naruto told him seriously. "I will get down on my knees and suck you off, I swear."

Sasuke huffed out a soft laugh. "How can I say no to the master of negotiations?"

"You're the best, I love you!"

"Keep that in mind next time you think I'm being unfair."

* * *

"Who were you texting?" Sasuke inquired later that night when he entered the bedroom, still drying his hair after having taken a quick shower.

Naruto was already in bed, but he'd been texting someone for a little while now; the intermittent buzzing of his phone filling in the silent pauses in the movie they had been watching.

Placing his phone on the nightstand, Naruto stretched his arms. "Gaara. He wanted to know how we've been doing so far. He's keeping me up to date with what's happening in our old hometown."

"Anything special?" Sasuke asked idly, dropping the towel in the hamper before sliding underneath the sheets as well.

"Apparently old man Sarutobi retired. Asuma will take over the principal position next," Naruto answered.

"They could have had worse options," Sasuke muttered, remembering the teacher. He'd been in charge of geography and literature and he'd been likeable enough.

"True," Naruto agreed and then a mischievous smile spread across his face and he rolled onto his side. "Now I recall that I made a promise a few hours ago and seeing as you kept your side of the deal …"

The dark haired man chuckled. "You're feeling up to it?"

Naruto arched his eyebrow haughtily. "Are you seriously asking me whether I'm feeling up to sucking your cock? Please, like that's such a hardship for me," he scoffed.

"Apologies, I'd forgotten about your oral fixation," Sasuke drawled, inhaling sharply when Naruto unceremoniously dipped his hand in his boxers, warm fingers sliding around his cock, which promptly grew hard.

"You're benefitting from my oral fixation, so I wouldn't make fun of it if I were you," Naruto told him cheekily and drew down the covers with his free hand.

Once the sheets were out of the way, he crawled between Sasuke's legs and tugged his underwear down just enough for Sasuke's dick to spring free, making Naruto grin. "Looks like this part at least isn't complaining about it," he teased and lowered his head, sliding his lips around the tip of Sasuke's cock before the other man could attempt to think of a reply.

"Fuck!" he hissed, hands automatically reaching down to grab Naruto's head, fingers tightening around the blond strands.

Tonight apparently was not a night of teasing, fortunately for Sasuke, because Naruto took him completely in his mouth without preamble; his tongue sliding around the girth as he slowly rose up again, sucking at the tip and tonguing the slit before going back down. The head of his cock bumped against the back of Naruto's throat, but the blond had lost his gag reflex a while ago and so it didn't bother him anymore. A fact for which Sasuke was quite grateful for, because it meant that Naruto could take him deep without feeling uncomfortable – and _that_ was something Naruto enjoyed a lot.

Sasuke hadn't been kidding when he said that Naruto had an oral fixation.

" _Al-almost there,"_ Sasuke groaned, wanting to warn the other man. It had been a little while since they had last done anything of this nature and he was quite pent up, especially when Naruto decided to take him completely in his mouth, swallowing around his cock every time he went down.

Upon hearing Sasuke's warning, Naruto hummed in acknowledgement and started bobbing his head up and down quicker; his hands gliding over Sasuke's thighs before his fingers dug into the muscles at the same time he sucked hard, taking him as deep into his throat as he could.

It was over before Sasuke fully realised it. One second his hands were pressing Naruto's head down and the next his legs were spasming and he moaned loudly, bright flashes against the back of his eyelids when he shut them tightly, coming in Naruto's mouth.

He was panting when he opened his eyes again, his fingers feeling a bit cramped as he finally released Naruto's head, allowing the blond to sit up. His boyfriend wore a Cheshire grin as he licked his lips, having swallowed everything like he usually did.

"Seems someone was a bit pent up," Naruto chuckled; his voice a tad rough. His mouth looked red, a bit swollen even and Sasuke smirked when he massaged his jaw a bit.

"Not my fault you're that good with your mouth," Sasuke muttered, relaxing into the pillows.

"Why thank you, I do try my best," Naruto grinned; his right hand dipping into his own trousers, which were definitely tented.

"Come here." Sasuke beckoned him and he didn't need to tell him that twice.

Naruto hurried to straddle his lap after getting rid of his trousers and his underwear and Sasuke captured his mouth in a deep kiss as he started jacking him off; Naruto so hard in his hand he could practically feel him pulsating.

"You really do love sucking me off, hm?" Sasuke murmured, sliding his lips to Naruto's ear where he bit softly down on his earlobe.

Naruto shivered; his hands coming up to clamp down on Sasuke's shoulders. "I – I didn't know it was a crime to love sucking off your boyfriend," he replied breathlessly, strained almost as he started rocking his hips into Sasuke's fist.

"Not a crime, definitely a benefit," Sasuke told him, twisting his hand in that particular way he knew Naruto enjoyed.

"Less talking, more hand moving," Naruto demanded and caught his mouth in a demanding, almost bruising kiss.

Sasuke was more than fine with that, though, and obliged him, moving his hand quicker, rubbing his thumb across the leaking head every second stroke up.

Naruto seemed to be feeling just as pent up as Sasuke had felt, because it didn't take much longer before Naruto moaned lowly and came, coating Sasuke's hand, before he slumped down on top of him.

The dark haired man clucked his tongue as he worked his hand free from between their bodies. "But I'm the one who was pent up?" he tutted. "Let me get up so that I can grab the wipes."

"Oh shut up," Naruto muttered and slapped his shoulder, but rolled off of him, allowing the older man to lean over to the nightstand to fish the package of wet wipes out of the second drawer.

Sasuke cleaned the both of them and stood up to throw the used wipes away. When he returned to the bed, Naruto had already drawn the sheets back over him and the window had been cracked ajar, allowing the background buzz of the city entering the night to fill the room.

"I'd say this was a nice ending to a good day overall, don't you think?" Naruto asked through a yawn, already growing drowsy.

"I can't complain," Sasuke said amused and crawled back into the bed, opening his arms when Naruto rolled into his side.

"Good night," Naruto mumbled, slinging one arm around Sasuke's waist and burying his face into Sasuke's neck, his chin digging in his shoulder.

"Yeah, good night," Sasuke murmured, resting one of his hands on Naruto's stomach.

Perhaps it was just his imagination but he thought he could feel a slight swelling where just a few weeks before Naruto's stomach had been completely flat.

He fell asleep with a faint smile lingering across his lips.

* * *

Saturday had them taking Sasuke's car for the first time in a couple of weeks to visit the doctor for Naruto's first check-up. There wasn't a bus or a train which stopped nearby the practice so they deemed it easier to take the car instead.

They were told to sit down in the waiting room while the doctor finished up with another patient. Both ignored the magazines provided on the low table in the middle and sat down on the uncomfortable chairs.

"You'd think at a doctor's office, no matter what kind of doctor they are, they would at least provide comfortable chairs," Naruto muttered darkly, poking at the hard surface petulantly.

"Wouldn't want the patients to become too comfortable," Sasuke snorted, resting his leg over his knee.

They were the only ones in the room, but that might have something to do with the fact that it was nearly lunchtime. At two Sasuke was expected at the Silver Hawk to start his training, but for now he was focusing on the check-up instead. This would be the very first check-up and he felt both nervous and excited, hoping that this examination wouldn't reveal anything bad.

Naruto hadn't been feeling off, thankfully, but with pregnancies one never could be too certain and Sasuke would only be completely assured once the doctor said there was nothing wrong.

"I know that face, you're worrying about nothing again," Naruto scolded him, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"I'm sorry for being concerned about you and our baby," Sasuke said dryly, tangling their fingers together and resting their hands on Naruto's thigh.

"I'm feeling fine, I promise," Naruto insisted and patted his stomach. "Even my morning sickness isn't so bad anymore."

"Nothing wrong with – "

They both turned their heads when the door opened and the secretary, Shizune she had introduced herself, smiled at them. "The doctor is ready to see you now. Just go through the corridor; it's the second door to the right."

"All right, thanks," Naruto grinned and jumped up, tugging Sasuke with him.

The beige carpet muffled their footsteps as they walked down the corridor, knocking on the right door.

"Come in!" a female voice called out and Naruto pushed the door open.

A blonde, busty woman was seated behind a desk, typing furiously. Her long hair was tied into two pigtails and she brushed one of them back over her shoulder with an annoyed cluck of her tongue. Her brown eyes fell on them next and she nodded, finishing up whatever she had been typing before turning to them completely.

"You're Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke? My appointment of eleven thirty?" she asked for confirmation.

"That's us," Naruto smiled and she nodded again, waving them inside.

"All right, so I see you filled in the paperwork, thank you for that, that makes my job a lot easier," she said briskly, clicking a couple of times.

As Sasuke and Naruto sat down, Sasuke caught a glimpse of a file on the screen.

"So turning nineteen this year – not exactly that old yet, hm?" she remarked, her eyes slightly narrowed as she scrolled through the file. "You're studying?"

"Yes, we both just started at university," Naruto confirmed and the way his fingers tightened around Sasuke's proved that he was nervous about this visit.

"Your parents paying for these visits?"

"Erm, no. My parents died a long time ago and Sasuke's …" Naruto trailed off, biting his lip as he glanced at Sasuke.

"Mine kicked me out of the house when I told them I'm gay," Sasuke answered flatly.

That had the doctor pausing and when she looked at him, she had an odd, contemplative look in her eyes. "My rates aren't exactly the cheapest," she cautioned them and while blunt, she still sounded gentle.

"We know," Naruto said and licked his eyes nervously, "but you're …"

"The only one I trust with Naruto and our child," Sasuke finished. "You're heralded as one of the best, if not _the_ best of the country, and they both deserve the best. Money is not a problem, we will be able to pay you."

She crossed her arms and leant back in her chair, which creaked slightly. "You're both students. I doubt you're rolling in money with no parents to support either one of you."

"We will be able to pay you," Sasuke repeated, narrowing his eyes slightly.

She snorted then and raised her hands briefly. "Fine, if you're sure. My name is Tsunade. In today's examination, I'll examine your vitals, check how the baby is doing and we'll find out how far you exactly are. Do you know that?"

"Not exactly. I think it has to be around three months now," Naruto replied.

"All right, not a problem. Go lie down on that table there and bare your stomach. We'll do an ultrasound first before I check the rest of your vitals," she said briskly. "Or do you prefer to have your vitals taken first? Either one is fine with me."

"The baby!" Naruto blurted out, blushing slightly. He cleared his throat and said in a more sedate voice, "Erm, we'd like to see the baby first. Right, Sasuke?"

He nodded and she smiled fleetingly at them. He supposed this was a reaction she frequently encountered in her practice.

The paper crinkled underneath Naruto's butt when he climbed onto the table and laid down, pulling his shirt up so that his stomach was bared. Sasuke came to stand next to the table, watching Tsunade flick on a screen on the other side.

"This gel is going to be cold," she warned Naruto before spreading a layer of gel across his belly, making the blond flinch slightly.

Picking up the transducer, she pressed it down on Naruto's stomach, spreading the gel even further. The screen flickered, turning grey at first before the edges started to turn black. There appeared to be some white outlines amidst the black mass, but Sasuke had no clue what to make of it. He might as well just be looking at a black screen for all the good it did him.

"Looks like you're thirteen weeks pregnant," Tsunade announced, moving the transducer slowly around. "This is the head," she pointed at the left side of the screen where with a bit of trouble Sasuke could make out some roundish shape, "here are the arms and the legs. Can't tell yet whether it's a boy or a girl, though, because your baby isn't in the right position for it."

"That's our baby?" Naruto asked in awe; his eyes glued to the screen. His hand found Sasuke's again and he squeezed it tightly.

Sasuke understood how he felt. It was almost unreal to look at the screen and realise it was actually showing their baby. Even though they had known for weeks that Naruto was pregnant, actually seeing the evidence on the screen, seeing limbs vaguely move around as Tsunade set about measuring him or her … It made everything more real, made him realise fully for the first time what they had got themselves into.

That was _his_ baby growing in Naruto's womb; their child growing steadily, awaiting the day to be born.

A lump formed in his throat and he blinked away some treacherous hot tears. When he looked at Naruto, the man was openly crying; silent tears dripping down his cheeks even as a large, bright smile unfurled across his face.

"I can't believe that's actually our baby!" he laughed in disbelief, his free hand reaching up to wipe his tears away.

Sasuke was quicker, using his hand to cup Naruto's cheek and draw him in a sweet, tender kiss. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," Naruto smiled and they shared another kiss before they both looked at the screen again.

No matter what kind of trouble might arise in their future, this moment, the day they saw their baby for the first time, would forever be etched into Sasuke's memories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN2: I hope this wasn't too bad! *sweatdrops*
> 
> Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
> 
> I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
> 
> Cuddles
> 
> Melissa


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I had wanted to update this story last week, but that clearly didn't happen. I'm sorry for the delay; my week's been shit to be honest, but I pushed myself to finish this chapter finally so that the delay wouldn't be even longer. Again my apologies for the delay and sorry if my crappy week and or the late hour (early, whatever, what does one consider two a.m. to be even?) sneaked into this chapter somehow.
> 
> Thank you for all the comments and the kudos! They really help lift my mood!
> 
> Warnings: Some drama; mature content; no means no; pushy people
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.
> 
> I hope you'll like this part!

_Chapter 5_

Working at the Silver Hawk was … an interesting experience.

He had worried that he would have a hard time learning how to make each type of drink, because he'd never been a fan of complicated drinks himself. When he had walked into the café on Saturday for his training session, he had told himself to consider the various drinks as just a chapter in one of his books that he had to study. He'd always been good at learning things by heart, so if he considered the various recipes as notes he needed to know by heart for an exam, he would be fine, he'd thought.

His method had perhaps been somewhat unorthodox, but it had worked, allowing him to learn all the recipes in just two afternoons. Preparing them perfectly had been trickier, unused as he was to the coffee machines, but even that he'd grown used to after a couple of days.

The ones he still wasn't used to after two weeks, were his colleagues and – the customers.

Kakashi, his boss, tended to hole up in the backroom for the majority of the day, dealing with orders and finances related to the café. Rarely did he show himself in the café itself. He also kept wearing a mask every day, which seemed to be a fixed habit of his if Sasuke were to believe his colleagues.

One of the colleagues in question was a tall, broad shouldered, young man with both orange hair and eyes, whose name was Jugo. He didn't show himself much in the café either, but that was because he was busy in the adjoined kitchen, where he prepared the pastries, cakes and bento. He tended to ply them with leftover pastries at the end of their shifts as well. Not particularly a fan of sweets, however, Sasuke usually ended up giving them to Naruto, who had come to appreciate that particular benefit of Sasuke's job.

A lanky, white haired guy with purple eyes named Suigetsu was another colleague of his. He shared some of the shifts with Sasuke and delighted in flirting with all the pretty girls who visited the place. Sometimes he was lucky and managed to get their phone numbers, other times he was snubbed or just plain out ignored. No matter which reaction he got, he all took it in stride, never looking bothered by being rejected.

"You don't seem to take it seriously," Sasuke remarked, watching Suigetsu easily bounce back after having been rejected by the brunette.

"Because I'm not." The guy's grin could rival that of a shark's. "I'm in it for the fun, no point in getting trapped in a relationship already, you know? If I score a date with them, that's fun, if I don't, well, no skin off my nose. There are plenty of other hot chicks I'll score with anyways."

"And that's why you're going to be a lonely loser for the rest of your life," Karin sniffed, making her way to the kitchen with some empty trays. "Because you don't know how to treat a woman right."

"That wasn't what Honda said last week," he smirked, giving an exaggerated wink. "Besides, like you're so damn innocent. I'd think Kakashi doesn't pay you enough to buy more clothes given that you only wear low cut ones. One of these days the customers are going to get a hell of a lot more than they're paying for."

"You're an arse, Suigetsu," she hissed, stomping on his foot, making him flinch, before she stomped into the kitchen.

While Suigetsu could have been more careful in expressing himself, there was a kernel of truth in what he said. Just as Suigetsu liked to flirt with the female customers, just as much did Karin flirt with the male ones – or even the female ones, she didn't appear to be picky. As long as they were attractive, they were guaranteed to be presented with her charm.

A charm she had tried to unleash on Sasuke a couple of times before he had told her in no uncertain terms that he had a boyfriend and wasn't interested at all. He had already been prepared to deal with any stubbornness she might display about it, because he wasn't exactly a stranger to girls still trying to flirt with him even when he had made it clear that he was already taken.

To his pleasant surprise, she had backed off immediately, her cheeks red, as she apologised profusely. She had got over her embarrassment rather quickly, however, and now enjoyed jokingly flirting with him sometimes whenever she was in a mischievous mood – or if a customer happened to be a bit too insistent in getting Sasuke's number.

Because while Sasuke might not have been working at the Silver Hawk for long yet, it was obvious that the customers liked what they saw. In just barely two weeks he'd already come to recognise several female customers, purely because they happened to stop by at least twice during his shift every day – and considering he only had the late afternoon shift, that meant they passed by the café at least twice in less than four hours.

Some girls just blushed and remained shy, barely managing to stutter out their order, but others were bolder, flirting with him every time, even when his icy looks should be enough of a deterrent. He wanted nothing more than to snap at them, make it clear that he wouldn't even give them the time of his day if he wasn't obliged to serve them, but that wouldn't reflect well on the business, he realised, so he just gritted his teeth and ignored them as much as he could.

Still barely two weeks of dealing with their bullshit and he was already close to snapping at them. Why was it that hard to just understand that he wasn't interested in them?

"I was wondering when your shifts ends?" The dark blonde girl smiled flirtingly, twirling a curl of her hair around her finger and blatantly ignoring her mocha which Sasuke placed in front of her. "Maybe we could do something fun together?"

"Sorry, got other plans," he smiled thinly, clenching his jaw. This was already the fifth girl asking for a date and he still had forty minutes of his shift left.

"Well, maybe we can see each other tomorrow?" she kept bugging him, clearly refusing to take the hint.

"No, sorry, but - "

"He already has plans with me. Tonight, tomorrow and every night for the rest of our lives," a very familiar, _very welcome_ , voice interrupted them cheerfully. "Every day for that matter too."

Sasuke couldn't help the smile spreading across his face when he turned around and saw to his surprise Naruto standing in front of the counter. "Hey there, I didn't know you were going to come. You finished your assignment?"

"Yeah, thought I would visit you. I haven't been here before and now I've got a great excuse," Naruto teased, leaning across the counter.

Almost automatically, Sasuke leant towards him to accept the kiss. It was nothing more than a peck, a quick brushing of their mouths together, but it had as amazing result that the girl looked absolutely offended before grabbing her cup and leaving in a huff.

"So, how is it, having to deal with annoying girls every day?" Naruto chuckled, though his eyes were slightly narrowed.

Sasuke didn't miss the scowl – quick as it disappeared again – he threw at the retreating back of the girl. "An exercise in self-restraint," he admitted ruefully. "Can I get you anything?"

"A caffè mocha?" Naruto shrugged, smiling sheepishly. "I want something sweet."

"Sure."

"Jugo says we can take the remaining pieces of the strawberry cake if we want," Karin announced, returning from the kitchen. Her gaze fell on Naruto and she grinned sharply, purring, "Well, hello there, cutie, I'm Karin, can I get you something? Like my number maybe?"

Naruto grinned, looking thoroughly amused. He jerked his thumb at Sasuke. "Already got his number, sorry."

Instead of offended or confused, her face lit up in recognition and if possible, her grin widened even more. "Oh, so you're Sasuke-kun's boyfriend! May I tell you that you've got very fine taste? You're the envy of all the girls, let me tell you."

"I know," Naruto snickered. "A lot of girls weren't that fond of me in secondary school because of that."

She crossed her arms on the counter, smirking. "I can imagine. His looks aren't bad for business, though. The boss says we've already made more profit in the past two weeks."

"You're being ridiculous," Sasuke grumbled as he made the final touches on Naruto's drinks.

"Nuh uh, ask Kakashi," she insisted. "Your pretty face is drawing in a lot more customers than usual."

"Glad I could be of service," Sasuke droned and placed the finished mug in front of Naruto, guessing he was going to remain here until the end of Sasuke's shift. There would be no sense in showing up here, only to leave a bit before his shift would end.

"He's hilarious too," she chuckled.

"Life of the party every time," Naruto agreed; his eyes shining with mischief.

"You're both annoying," Sasuke informed them, glowering.

"Ah, don't be like that," Naruto huffed amused before sobering up slightly. "Seriously, though, the customers aren't too pushy?"

"No worse than I've experienced in secondary," Sasuke replied and shrugged.

Yes, the ones who didn't get the hint were annoying, but it wasn't like he could really do much about it. Be too rude and that would damage the business. There wasn't much they could do to him, though. Sure, they could keep flirting with him all they liked, but they would only be rejected time and time again.

"I've taken to chasing off the ones who are really persistent," Karin said lightly. "I can't blame them for flirting with cutie here, but there are boundaries that need to be respected."

"That's very nice of you, I mean it," Naruto said and turned to Sasuke with a raised eyebrow. "Weird that you let her do it, though, you've never been one to hold back."

"I don't want to risk losing this job because I was too rude," Sasuke grumbled, using a cloth to clean up some of the coffee stains on his work desk.

"Don't worry about that," Karin said dismissively, brushing her hair back over her shoulder. "If you would get fired that easily for being rude, neither I nor Suigetsu would still be working here. Nor Kakashi for that matter, because for all that he can be pretty lazy, he's got quite the foul mouth on him as well."

"This is amazing," Naruto grinned. "Well, guess I should sometimes pop up to remind all the girls that you're a taken man. Karin-san, you've got permission to lay it on thick if some girls are too persistent when I'm not here."

"I don't need anyone's help, I've been rejecting girls for years," Sasuke growled.

"No offense, Sasuke-kun, but that makes you sound like a dick," Karin said amused. "And just Karin is fine, really."

"I'm Naruto," the blond introduced himself and took another sip of his drink. "This is really good by the way, Sasuke, you've been holding out on me."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, but a smile nevertheless tugged at his lips, even as he turned to the next customer.

* * *

Sasuke had been working at the Silver Hawk for a month when he first encountered a customer who wouldn't take 'no' for an answer.

He had an hour left to go, sharing his shift with Suigetsu this time, when the young woman walked in. Her white dress fell loosely down her hips, flaring slightly with every step she took; her high heels tip-tapping on the tiled floor. Her hair was done up in a loose bun, with some curls framing her face and her red lipstick stood out against her pale face.

At this time on a Friday evening, there weren't many customers in the coffee shop, most people preferring to go out in bars or restaurants instead of wasting their time at a coffee shop. There was an elderly woman solving crossword puzzles in the back corner and a bespectacled guy next to the window, who was sort of a regular, coming to the shop four evenings a week to work on his paper while drowning himself in black coffee.

"Good evening, what can I get for you?" Sasuke asked politely.

Suigetsu was in the back, doing a stock intake because Kakashi had to leave for a bit. The door had been left ajar, just in case Sasuke did need to call in his help, but both men thought that was unlikely given how dead the shop was usually around this time.

She smiled instantaneously, resting her hands on the counter. Her eyes gleamed as she took in his features and he resisted the urge to scowl. He already hadn't had the best of days, having woken up with a headache, which had only been exacerbated by his fellow students who didn't know how to keep their damn voices at a normal volume. He also had trouble finding information for one of his papers, which led to him being in a rather foul mood when he arrived at the coffee shop for his shift.

For all that Suigetsu could be rather insensitive, he apparently possessed enough people skills to realise that Sasuke wasn't in the mood to be joked with and had left him alone for the most part, for once not trying to egg him on.

The last thing Sasuke needed now was another woman who thought she had a shot with him.

"Hm, you can give me a medium ice cold mocha Frappuccino, seeing as it's so hot still outside," she smiled, waving her hand right above her cleavage.

He gave her a bland smile in return. "Of course, one medium mocha Frappuccino coming up. That's 540 yen, please." He turned around and started collecting the ingredients, checking quickly whether they still had enough ice.

It being May, the temperatures were climbing with each day that passed and today had been one of the hottest so far – which hadn't helped improving his mood exactly. A lot of customers, therefore, had deviated from their usual warm orders, and had instead ordered mostly iced teas and cold coffees to combat the heat.

"So, does your shift end soon?" she asked, her heels tapping as she walked over to the other side of the counter where she could accept her cup and which gave her a more direct view of him. Judging by the smile on her face, the latter reason was definitely why she was already there.

"No," he answered shortly, selecting the right cup.

"Got any plans for tonight?" she fished, because clearly she wasn't about to give up.

"Go home and be with my partner," he answered pointedly.

"That doesn't sound exciting," she remarked, completely bypassing his remark about Naruto.

He barely held himself back from rolling his eyes and instead clenched his jaw. Really, hadn't the day been bad enough already?

"Well, it's exciting enough for me," he said curtly and scooped the crushed ice in the cup.

"I think you and I could have some fun together, go out, you know?" she giggled, twirling a curl around her index finger. "I know some really great clubs, exclusive ones even, but I'm sure I can get you inside."

"No, thank you. As I said before, I've got a boyfriend," he said, hanging on to his last thread of patience as much as he could. Maybe by being clear about what kind of partner he had, she would back off finally.

No such luck, naturally, because that would be way too easy and the universe wasn't about to make it easy for him today. "Well, he doesn't have to know," she smiled and winked. "Nothing wrong with having some fun, you know?"

"Not my idea of fun, here's your Frappuccino," he said coolly and placed it on the counter.

He barely retracted his hand on time before she could close her fingers around it. "Well, I'll be waiting here for a bit longer in case you change your mind," she smiled seductively and walked over to one of the tables right in front of the counter, her hips swaying back and forth.

"You look like you're going to kill someone," Suigetsu observed when Sasuke briefly slipped into the backroom for a short break.

The woman kept shooting coy glances at him and it was making his skin crawl. She also turned out to be the slowest drinker on earth, because her cup still wasn't empty even though she'd been sitting there for twenty minutes already. Didn't she have somewhere else to go? Preferably on the other end of the city?

"One of the customers thinks she can convince me to go out with her," he growled, striding over to the mini fridge to snatch one of the ice cold bottles there. "She keeps sitting there even after I told the stupid bitch that I've got a boyfriend. How deluded can she be?"

Suigetsu peeked through the gap of the door and whistly lowly. "You're talking about the hot chick in the white dress?"

"I don't consider her hot, but yes, that's her."

"Yeah well, you're with a guy, so it's no wonder you don't appreciate the female beauty," Suigetsu teased, ducking when a pen was thrown at him with frightful precision. He appeared to understand that this was still not the right time to tease Sasuke, because he straightened out and dropped the pen on the desk, suggesting, "You want me to get her attention off you?"

"Flirt with her, kick her out, I don't care, I just want her to stop looking at me," Sasuke snapped.

The other man raised an eyebrow. "Man, you're really not having a good day, huh? Fine, let's see if I can work my magic on her."

He slipped out of the room, letting the door fall shut behind him and Sasuke sagged down on one of the chairs, scowling at the calendar on the wall as he drank his water. He couldn't wait for this damn shift to be over so he could go home and be with Naruto. The blond's shift ended half an hour before his, so he should be at their apartment already by the time Sasuke came home. Maybe they could order some takeout, see if any of the business' nearby were giving out deals.

Keeping himself focused on that image – of Naruto waiting for him at home, ready to delight him with another tale of what the library patrons had got up to tonight – he screwed the dop back on the bottle and stood up, stretching his arms.

Ready to tackle the remaining half hour of his shift.

* * *

The woman was not ready to give up.

Suigetsu tried several times to flirt with her, but while she remained polite, it was obvious he was getting rejected again and again to the point where he went back behind the counter and shook his head almost imperceptibly with a sigh.

"No dice, man, she's really focused on you," he said in a low voice. "Tried everything, but nothing."

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Sasuke growled and marched from behind the counter, going straight to her table.

She straightened up immediately, giving him a blinding smile and managing somehow to push up her breasts even more. It had the old woman next to her snorting quietly, shaking her head and tutting her lips.

Plastering a fake smile on his face, Sasuke said, "My apologies, but if you're not going to order anything else, I'm afraid you have to leave. Boss' orders."

Technically he wasn't lying. While it wasn't an explicit order, Kakashi didn't like customers lingering in the shop if they weren't going to order more. He said they only took up spaces that could be used by actual paying customers and the only exception he was willing to make was if the weather was horrible outside.

Given that it was still warm and no speck of rain to be seen, there was no reason for the woman to remain here, especially if she wasn't going to order anything else.

"Aw, that's too bad. I'd love to order, but I don't want to ruin my appetite," she sighed and rose up. "I'll see you in a bit!"

"No, you won't," he remarked and went back behind the counter before she could say anything else.

Suigetsu was watching the entire scene with his arms crossed and both eyebrows raised and the second the woman was outside, the elderly woman piped up, "Mark my words, young man, you need to be careful with her type. She clearly grew up getting everything she wanted. Dangerous sort, that one." She nodded and went back to her crossword puzzle, sipping daintily from her third cup of tea.

"Grandmother might be right," Suigetsu commented. "She's quite the persistent one, I give her that."

"Whatever, she's gone," Sasuke sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's all that matters."

Except she wasn't gone. She remained sitting on one of the benches in front of the shop, smiling flirtingly whenever Sasuke dared to look outside.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Beyond fed up now, Sasuke stood right outside the counter, spotting the woman still seated even though he'd taken his time to get his stuff after his shift had ended.

What the hell was wrong with her that she didn't get the more than obvious hints he'd thrown at her? How much clearer than "I've got a boyfriend" did he have to be?

"Told you, my boy," the elderly woman said, patting his arm as she shuffled her way to the door. "She's dangerous. You need me to call the police?"

"No, it's fine, I'll deal with it," he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

She looked like she didn't really believe him, but nodded nonetheless and left the shop, her handbag clutched in her wrinkly hands. She appeared to say something to the woman, who frowned at her. Whatever she told her, it had the woman crossing her arms and turning away from the old woman.

"You want to wait here until she really leaves?" Suigetsu offered. There wasn't even a spot of amusement left in his eyes and instead he looked slightly disturbed. "I've met some crazy girls in my life, but dude, she might take the crown in that category. There's being persistent and then there's being her."

"I'm not going to hide here all because that bitch is brainless," Sasuke said irritated.

"What if she keeps harassing you?"

"Then she's going to have a problem," Sasuke snapped and walked outside, refusing to cower.

She rose up the second he closed the door behind him, a flirty smile instantly appearing on her face.

"Save yourself the trouble, I'm not interested," Sasuke said bluntly. "Just in case you were too stupid to listen the first time: I've got a boyfriend. That means I'm absolutely not interested in women and even if I were, you're definitely not my type. Now fuck off."

"Aw, come on, don't be like that," she pouted and when she tried to grab his arm, he stepped away swiftly. "Just because you've never been with a woman doesn't mean you won't like it! I can show you what you've been missing out."

"You think you're the first one to try to convert me?" he smiled cynically and she faltered finally. "Think that because you got a pair of tits and a semi-pretty face, you can get any guy you want? Let me tell you this: I've met a lot of women more beautiful than you in my life and I've got no doubt that I will meet plenty more. If they couldn't get me to tear my eyes off my boyfriend, why the hell do you think a stupid bint like you would have a shot?"

"What's going on here?"

Surprised, Sasuke turned his head, frowning when Naruto walked over to them. Blue eyes flitted warily back and forth between Sasuke and the woman and at once Naruto appeared to arrive to the right conclusion because he pursed his lips and sighed.

"Man, I was so hoping that Suigetsu was just pulling my leg when he texted me."

"You've got Suigetsu's number?" Sasuke's frown deepened. "When the hell did that happen?"

"Eh, around two weeks ago?" Naruto shrugged and came to stand directly next to him, linking their arms together and resting his head on Sasuke's shoulder. The oversized shirt he wore – definitely one of Sasuke's, who had actually stolen it from his brother's a few years ago – concealed his belly. "He texted me around twenty minutes ago, said there was a crazy bitch who wouldn't leave you alone. I thought he was kidding, but clearly he wasn't."

"And who are you calling a crazy bitch?" the woman bit out, clenching her fists at her sides.

Naruto lifted an eyebrow. "Sweetheart," he smiled poisonously sweet, "if you haven't figured out yet that I'm talking about you, what made you even possibly think you had a shot with _my boyfriend?_ He's all about brains before beauty, you know, though you couldn't even get that last part right." He eyed her critically. "That shade of red really isn't your colour, trust me. Now I suggest you piss off and leave my boyfriend alone."

"Or else?" she challenged him, which honestly was the stupidest thing she could have done.

He leant closer to her and whatever look he had on his face had her stiffening and her eyes widening just the slightest. "Or else you won't like what I'm going to do next, trust me."

She seemed to be in the possession of some shred of intelligence at least, because she stormed off without another word.

"You really know how to attract the crazy type, huh?" Naruto remarked faux casually, but his eyes were sharp and cold as he watched her stalk down the street.

"Yeah well, not like I go looking for them," Sasuke said irritated, but a bit of relief swelled up. "Suigetsu really texted you?"

Naruto visibly relaxed when he looked up at him. "Yeah, he honestly sounded quite worried. Told me this crazy bitch wouldn't get the hint and kept bothering you and no matter what either one of you said, she refused to listen." He shrugged and clasped their hands together as they started to walk away. "Figured it would be easier if that dumbass saw for herself that you're really taken. You might want to talk to Kakashi-san and have him ban her from the shop or so. Girl looks crazy enough to want to take revenge or so."

"I'll probably do that," Sasuke agreed and tangled their fingers together. "You didn't have to come all the way here, though."

"What and not help my boyfriend solve his crazy woman predicament?" Naruto teased, but there was still a cold glint in his eyes. "Nah, no way, I had way too much fun rubbing it in her face that you're mine."

"And you say I have possessive issues," Sasuke snorted, tugging Naruto into the right direction.

He'd taken the car instead of public transport for once, because he had had to make a quick stop at the bank to solve an issue with their app before his shift and the car was the only way to arrive at the shop on time. Fortunately Kakashi had rented out two parking spots in the underground parking lot near his coffee shop so Sasuke hadn't had to worry about finding space to park.

The only small mercy today.

"Your day didn't get better, hm?" Naruto asked sympathetically when they were in the car.

"No, just bullshit piled on bullshit piled on bullshit," Sasuke muttered darkly, clenching his fingers around the steering wheel.

"I'm sorry," Naruto whispered and leant over the gear stick to kiss him. "Sorry you had to deal with so much shit."

"Yeah." Sasuke kissed him back and couldn't help but melt into the kiss a bit, relaxing finally now that he was surrounded by Naruto's taste and smell.

His hand landed on the gentle swelling that was becoming more pronounced with each week that passed, cupping the small bump, and unconsciously he smiled; his thumb rubbing over the cloth.

"That's better," Naruto murmured and pulled back to kiss the tip of his nose. "You look far better smiling than frowning."

"Idiot," Sasuke snorted.

Naruto winked and rested his hand on top of Sasuke's. "Bastard. Now come on, get us home."

That was an order Sasuke had no problem following.

* * *

That evening, when they slipped into bed after dimming the lights everywhere and locking the door, Naruto crawled into his lap and wrapped his arms around Sasuke's neck, bending down to kiss him. From his mouth, his lips travelled to Sasuke's cheeks, pressing feather light kisses there, before they drifted across his forehead, dipping down to his nose, and then lowering until they touched the hollow beneath his left ear.

"What's going on?" Sasuke wondered, his hands wandering up and down across Naruto's back, before they settled around his hips, tightening just a fraction when the blond shifted his arse, settling down closer to his dick.

The slow smile unfurling across Naruto's face had heat pooling into the pit of Sasuke's lower belly immediately, his body automatically reacted to that smile promising him so much pleasure.

"Well, they always say it's best to relax after a hard day," Naruto hummed and shimmied his way out of his shirt, throwing it carelessly onto the floor. "You know, the hormones that get released when you perform certain activities help with relaxing and help reducing stress and even pain."

" _That's_ what you remembered from our biology classes?" Sasuke smirked, reclining against his pillow.

"Don't be surprised," Naruto huffed, smacking his shoulder lightly. "I did pay attention in school, you know."

"Is that why you kept asking me to tutor you?" Sasuke asked sceptically, pressing his lips together when Naruto tugged his shirt up. He lifted his arms, responding to the unspoken demand in glistening blue eyes, and allowed the other man to remove his shirt.

The grin gracing Naruto's mouth was absolutely wicked and served to only further awaken Sasuke's arousal; his hardening dick pressing insistently against Naruto's arse.

"Well, any reason to be with you was a good enough reason for me," Naruto replied lightly, trailing his fingers down Sasuke's chest, making him shiver slightly. "And you did give me such good incentives every time to finish my work."

"I had to, otherwise you wouldn't concentrate," Sasuke scoffed.

"Can't blame me for having better things to concentrate on." Naruto winked and caught his mouth in a deep kiss before Sasuke could think of a retort.

They shifted around a bit, as they helped divest each other of their remaining clothes, and a twin hiss left their mouths when their naked bodies were pressed together, their cocks brushing and sliding against each other. Naruto's belly was definitely more noticeable now that there were no longer clothes hiding it from view and Sasuke cupped it reverently, stroking the soft skin carefully with his thumbs, kissing Naruto again and again, coaxing his lips to part.

They did so eagerly, allowing their tongues to touch each other and ignite a heavy want within Sasuke. It had been a while since they had last made love like this and he caught himself sucking a bruise in Naruto's neck before he could think twice.

"There's no way I'm going to be able to hide that one underneath my shirt," Naruto said, a bit breathless and pouting at the same time. "What will other people think?"

"That you're mine and they best keep their hands off," Sasuke said simply and kissed him hard as he flipped them around, so that he ended up on top of Naruto, lying between his spread legs but being careful to keep his weight off his belly.

"Always so possessive," Naruto tutted; a flush decorating his cheeks. It went all the way down to his neck and chest, colouring his skin a pretty pink.

"After tonight, you have no right to lord that over me," Sasuke said smugly and flicked his thumb across one of Naruto's nipples, making the man hiss and arch his back slightly. "Who was the one who came all the way over to the shop to put a woman in her place?"

"Yeah well, someone needed to make it clear to her that you're off the market," Naruto huffed and wrapped his legs around Sasuke's hips. "Now come on, less talking about that bitch, more concentrating on me!"

"When have I ever not concentrated on you?" Sasuke questioned rhetorically and their next kiss was filthy and deep, pulling a deep moan from the blond, as Sasuke fumbled with the cap of the lube, popping it open blindly.

Automatically Naruto lifted his hips when Sasuke slipped his wet fingers between his cheeks. He rubbed some lube around his entrance first, feeling the muscle flutter against his fingertip, before he breached it carefully. He was rewarded with a contented sigh and Naruto nipping at his lower lip.

"I missed this," Naruto muttered, rolling his hips in tandem with Sasuke moving his finger inside of him.

He pushed his finger inside a couple of times, making sure to spread more lube around before he added a second finger to stretch him even further. Muscles briefly clenched down around the digits and then seemed to swallow them completely, drawing them in even further.

Two became three eventually and only when Sasuke was certain that Naruto was sufficiently wet and stretched did he pull his fingers back, swallowing when those inner muscles tightened around them, as if to hold them inside.

"Definitely missed this," Naruto moaned when Sasuke sank inside him, pushing into him until he was completely inside, his hips resting flush against his buttocks.

Words momentarily left him, but he figured his kiss convened his feelings well enough. He grasped one of Naruto's hands, knitted their fingers together and pressed them against the pillow, before he drew back slowly. Holding darkened blue eyes, he sank back in him in one fluid thrust and from there on, all thoughts left his mind.

All he could focus on was Naruto's eyes, how those swollen lips tasted against his, how little sighs and broken mewls and deep moans filled his ears, muscles tightening around his cock every time he pushed into him again and again, driving the both of them to euphoric heights.

All he could focus on was Naruto. On them together.

* * *

"You know, if the women are bothering too much, you don't have to keep working there," Naruto remarked cautiously after they had finished taking a shower and were back in bed.

Sasuke couldn't help but snort derisively. "Yeah, I kind of have to if we want to keep affording everything." He wrapped his arm around the blond, pulling him closer.

Swinging both an arm and a leg around Sasuke, Naruto mumbled, "I could take up extra - "

"No, Naruto," Sasuke said sharply, cutting him off instantly. "We talked about this, you're not going to take up extra shifts. Not when you're pregnant."

"I don't want you to be miserable for my sake either," Naruto shot back, his fingers curling into Sasuke's waist.

The dark haired man shook his head and inhaled deeply before kissing his forehead. "I'll be fine. I'm not going to let myself be chased away from there by some airheaded bimbos."

"But Sasuke," Naruto protested once more, quietening down when Sasuke pecked his lips.

"I'll be fine," he repeated.

He would be. He had to be. They weren't exactly in a position where they could afford to be picky about where they worked. One day they would be in that position, he promised himself, but until then he would keep working at the coffee shop and grit his teeth through any flirting attempts people might try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN2: I hope this chapter wasn't too bad!
> 
> Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
> 
> I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
> 
> Cuddles
> 
> Melissa

**Author's Note:**

> AN2: Do we smell some angst around the corner? Yes, my dears, we do. So what do you think? Is it worth it to continue the story or should I just completely trash it?
> 
> Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
> 
> I hope to see you all back in the next chapter (if there's enough interest at least)! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
> 
> Cuddles
> 
> Melissa


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